Rating: 
Summary: A Surprising Portrait
Review: I bought this book because I was in the mood for something that I thought would amount to lots of juicy gossip and would be a guilty pleasure, but was quite surprised to find that Mr. Blow's account of his tenure at George magazine and his relationship with JFK Jr. to be very insightful. I think he does an excellent job of showing us an individual weighed down by the enormous weight of a virtual family of icons but who, nevertheless, strived to make a place for himself in the world. John comes off as an imperfect human being who nevertheless showed grace under pressure more often than not. It is also easy to see the admiration the author had for his subject. An engrossing reading experience.
Rating:
Summary: Delightful book
Review: This book was delightful. Blow is a fantastic writer. Reading through this book was like lazily drifting down the Delaware River in Northern New Jersey in a kayak: just effortless, total pleasure.The book does not really let you know any deep dark inner secrets about John F. Kennedy, Jr., though there are hints of things through his actions and statements. The book is more about what was it was like for Blow to work with JFK, Jr. That was fine with me, because that's what I usually wonder, what it would be like to be around JFK, Jr. I had one frustration with the book. It wasn't too detailed about observations of John's facial expressions and tones of voice. I got the impression of Blow as a person who was trying to look away from John rather than at John. Blow even says as much, that he was trying to avoid getting in too close to John, because doing so seemed to get people in trouble. That reminded me of a movie I once saw about George III of England, which showed that the king ultimately valued employees who knew how to keep a certain distance rather than those who got up too close and personal, even if the latter were very nice. Be sure to check out the photo of the author. He is surprisingly good-looking himself -- and has amazing eyes.
Rating: 
Summary: odd
Review: There is something odd and unpleasant about this book. The author was by his own account, not the best friend of JFK Jr. It isn't a great or even very good biography. The author also, can't seem to explain why he wrote it. This book, alas adds nothing to history and seems more like backstairs gossip than anything else. It's Kitty Kelly without the clever writing. Even if you collect Kennedy books this is not a must have.
Rating: 
Summary: A different look at JFK Jr.
Review: I liked this book. What would it be like to work for a famous, rich, beloved & handsome scion of a family the whole world knows about? The author tells us. At times you could tell that the author wished he could have been better "friends" with JFK Jr., but he was, when all was said & done, his employee. Sometimes, too, it was almost as if the author had a little crush on JFK Jr., but then he'd get into some of the difficult areas of Jr.'s life -- like his defense of his "poster-boy" cousins -- and you felt that he'd hit the nail on the head. I've read reviews that said the author was catty about Jr.'s wife, but I didn't think so -- he was just relaying what he saw, as someone close but not too close, to these people. All in all, I think the author did a good job in reporting what he knew, and although he had a clear affection for Jr., it doesn't slant the book into worshipping-the-wonderful-Kennedys territory like so many of the newest Jackie books do.
Rating:
Summary: A Wonderful Book!!
Review: This is such a wonderful book...Richard Blow is so creative in his imagery, I keep re-reading paragraphs just for the sheer delight of it! This book not only takes you behind the scenes in John Kennedy's life, but it also reveals the high-pressured world of magazine publishing. I'll never take the simple pleasure of reading an enjoyable magazine for granted again! The author is such a talented and honest writer. Wow, What imagery!!! Just an example...this little bit about a GEORGE interview with George Wallace: "On his lap was a round, white ceramic ashtray holding seven stumpy cigar butts, one of which was still emitting a lazy trail of smoke. From time to time, Wallace would extend his right arm and clutch and clutch the ragged cigar in his thick, clumsy fingers, like one of those arcade claws that fall upon stuffed animals." This book is an enjoyable read...I hope the author writes another book soon!
Rating: 
Summary: Disappointed in entirety
Review: When I first started this book, I was excited. As a person growing up with images of JFK jr saluting his fathers' casket, to following him in the papers, to seeing him a part of Seinfeld and the Daryl Hannah saga, to seeing his death, I was anticipating a great book. WHAT A DISPPOINTMENT. Richard Blow is aptly named as he has spent more time in the book BLOWing his own horn then writing about JFK jr. How could I have been duped into buying this book. I was cauggt up in the fantasy that the author himself refers to - we tend to have seen JFK jr thru our own idea of what he was. I thought that some of the book was well written but Richard Blow really BLEW it by making it seem like he was almost the central figure in this book. It could have been titled "How I Helped Make JFK JR a Respected Memeber of the Publishing Community (LIKE ME). I would definitely NOT recommend this book to anyone with any interest in JFK jr and hope that I NEVER read anything by this author again. Allen Wiebers - Versaille Missouri
Rating:
Summary: A beautiful portrait
Review: I really enjoyed this book. It is well written and, indeed, paints a portrait of a young man who died before his potential could be realized. It doesn't glorify John F. Kennedy Jr., it simply tells about a famous person who handled the celebrity, he was born to, with dignity. It is about a young man with flaws, no more - no less than most. Above all, it points out that he was more complex and smarter than the media painted him to be.
Rating:
Summary: A Caring Friend - An Honest Employee
Review: Having grown up with the Kennedy clan's dramatic stories ( I was in Washington when JFK died) I feel this young man did what he needed to do to help himself and others know more about the work he and John did on George. He also felt compelled to let others know that John was an average type person who handled his celebrity with grace. Those looking for slease will not find it in this book. Rather it is a good account of the professional experience of the author and others who helped JFK, Jr. succeed in a dream of publishing a successful magazine. He also helps us ( the public) understand why we feel so close to this family.
Their losses are ours. When each of the family members have passed,we have each felt our own loss, as if we were part of the family. We don't feel a loss as if they were royalty, but we feel a genuine loss. I feel that the author did a wonderful job at expressing this emotion for all of us.
He shared enough positive and yet negative to make the story genuine and sincere.
The title is a bit sensational, but hey, we're all in business for profit, so why not him?
I say, thank you to a bright young writer who deserves credit for sharing his relationship with an icon non of us will soon forget.
Rating:
Summary: The Instinct Of The Puppet For Its Master
Review: Richard Blow's American Son, which would more reasonably be titled A Memoir Of John F. Kennedy Jr., By A Former Employee of George Magazine, is a readable but readily disposable memoir of Blow's years working as a magazine editor under John Kennedy Jr. As most reviewers have pointed out, theirs was largely a business acquaintanceship only, something Blow seemingly doesn't want to fully realize himself or admit to the reader, though his facts, as written, make it clear. It's not difficult to sympathize with Blow, however; as most Americans probably would be, he was overwhelmed by Kennedy's celebrity, power, historical status, personality, and ever-looming political future. Blow finds Kennedy himself continually overwhelmed by his own position in life, though courageously and graciously attempting to balance himself day after day, year after year, in most respects of his life. To his credit, Blow doesn't mince words about the overall mediocrity of George. The passages that concern the staff's efforts to raise the magazine's credibility while counteracting what appear to be Kennedy's jeopardizing schemes are fascinating. According to Blow, Kennedy was a knowingly reckless person, and Blow portrays him as daring, careless and at times blindly confident to a point of self-destruction. Blow may be absolutely correct in this, but it's likely that many years and many myths will pass before the myriad truths about Kennedy's psyche are known. The problem is that the author, in apparently attempting to position himself higher in the world via the writing of the book, comes off as smug, politically naive, and unconsciously arrogant, a bad, if typical, combination for a public personality standing in public scrutiny. Between every line the reader can hear Blow chiming to himself 'Remember, Richard, You're A Somebody, Too' in repetitive sing-song fashion. In attempting to portray himself for the sake of his story as not entirely human but rather as a smooth, seamless fiction-like media creation, blond, tall, and long-legged, of and yet not of this world, Blow seriously jeopardizes his credibility and reminds us continually that we're reading a combination of fuzzy fact, romantic fiction, and guess-work thrown together to make an entertaining and page-turning stew. The dreamy author photo completes this impression, as if Blow, still competing with Kennedy, wants to make it clear to the world that he's at least as good looking as Kennedy was, bee-stung lips and all. Point made, Richard. Point taken. In light of this, it's doubtful whether Blow has convinced a single reader when he speaks of his dedication to Democratic causes and of his long-standing identification with outsiders and underdogs. Here he sounds not only smarmy but leagues-removed from any clear perception or insight about difficult social realities. Blow tries and fails to have it both ways, portraying himself with one foot firmly if grudgingly planted in the world of privilege, but the other keenly and earnestly resting in the inner city where the poor needy people are. Blow is quick to remind us that he cut short his stay at the New York Athletic Club, bastion of privilege and propriety that it is, as quickly as possible. Imagine--having to wear a jacket just to enter the front door of the place. Ingenious, literal-minded rebel Blow circumvents this elitist affront by daily riding the freight elevator around back with the help. You asked for proof that he's down with the brothers? Blow also sounds helplessly half in love with Kennedy on more than half of the book's pages, which would be fine if he'd address and analyze his feelings at some length or at least recognize them and make of them what he can. Is it mere male competitiveness, hero worship, idol worship, unacknowledged hatred and unavoidable envy, or something brought about by the sheer romance of Kennedy's position? The author clearly has a tough time existing in Kennedy's orbit, as Kennedy is portrayed as an apparently benevolent black hole who pulls everything and everyone helplessly towards himself, embracing very few (not Blow), and allowing the rest to pass scathed or unscathed to eventually discover their own individual meaninglessness in the greater scheme of Kennedy's life. Surely Blow was incidental in Kennedy's day-to-day life, and Blow, mildly obsessed and clearly hungry for recognition and position, finds himself, due to his own lack of discipline and self-knowledge, in a highly unstable, half-illusory position. Blow should have recognized his own spirit of competitiveness and realized the hopelessness of trying to go up against Kennedy, one of the most highly-placed men in the world. As a result, Blow, rightly sensing Kennedy's power but not quite able to admit it, feels strangely manipulated and emotionally controlled. Readers will sense a continual, purple-faced tantrum seething just below the surface of Blow's prose and personal history. American Son is interesting for a number of reasons, though not for the reasons Blow intends--the reader sees clearly everything about Blow that he himself does not, including the reason why his fiance left him. By naively trying to overstate himself to the public, and worse, by indulging himself in a compensatory ego-gratifying fantasy, Blow reveals himself to be something of a fool, one to be pitied (and perhaps one taken advantage of by his scheming publishers, into whose hands he naively played), and thus his memories of Kennedy, whatever they are or might be, have a very limited objective value.
Rating: 
Summary: Nicely done....
Review: From the newspaper hype about Caroline Kennedy being so upset about this book, I expected something sleazy or at least derogatory....nothing such! This was a look at a human being, nothing salacious, nothing critical. It was interesting to read about the man, rather than the persona. The treatment of Carolyn was also upbeat, again nothing salacious and nothing critical. I don't understand the problem here!
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