Book Review: "Jacqueline Kennedy: Historic Conversations on Life with John F. Kennedy" by Caroline Kennedy

Jacqueline Kennedy: Historic Conversations on Life with John F. Kennedy by Caroline Kennedy
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

Amazon Book Description

In 1964, Jacqueline Kennedy recorded seven historic interviews about her life with John F. Kennedy. Now, for the first time, they can be heard and read in this deluxe, illustrated book and 8-CD set.

Shortly after President John F. Kennedy’s assassination, with a nation deep in mourning and the world looking on in stunned disbelief, Jacqueline Kennedy found the strength to set aside her own personal grief for the sake of posterity and begin the task of documenting and preserving her husband’s legacy. In January of 1964, she and Robert F. Kennedy approved a planned oral-history project that would capture their first-hand accounts of the late President as well as the recollections of those closest to him throughout his extraordinary political career. For the rest of her life, the famously private Jacqueline Kennedy steadfastly refused to discuss her memories of those years, but beginning that March, she fulfilled her obligation to future generations of Americans by sitting down with historian Arthur Schlesinger, Jr., and recording an astonishingly detailed and unvarnished account of her experiences and impressions as the wife and confidante of John F. Kennedy. The tapes of those sessions were then sealed and later deposited in the John F. Kennedy Presidential Library and Museum upon its completion, in accordance with Mrs. Kennedy’s wishes.

The resulting eight and a half hours of material comprises a unique and compelling record of a tumultuous era, providing fresh insights on the many significant people and events that shaped JFK’s presidency but also shedding new light on the man behind the momentous decisions. Here are JFK’s unscripted opinions on a host of revealing subjects, including his thoughts and feelings about his brothers Robert and Ted, and his take on world leaders past and present, giving us perhaps the most informed, genuine, and immediate portrait of John Fitzgerald Kennedy we shall ever have. Mrs. Kennedy’s urbane perspective, her candor, and her flashes of wit also give us our clearest glimpse into the active mind of a remarkable First Lady.

In conjunction with the fiftieth anniversary of President Kennedy’s Inauguration, Caroline Kennedy and the Kennedy family are now releasing these beautifully restored recordings on CDs with accompanying transcripts. Introduced and annotated by renowned presidential historian Michael Beschloss, these interviews will add an exciting new dimension to our understanding and appreciation of President Kennedy and his time and make the past come alive through the words and voice of an eloquent eyewitness to history.

This fabulous set with 8 audio CDs and hardcover book is one of my favorite additions to my personal library. The book includes the transcripts of the historic interview that Jacqueline Kennedy granted Arthur M. Schlesinger, Jr. only a little more than three months after President Kennedy's assassination. Schlesinger served as special assistant to President Kennedy during his administration and he sat down with Jacqueline Kennedy over four months of roughly one hour sessions to capture 7 1/2 hours of personal reflection of her life with John F. Kennedy. It was incredibly important to the First Lady to provide an oral testament to her husband's legacy as that was the one thing he never had the chance to contribute himself. It was agreed that this would be the only interview that she would give in regards to speaking of her life with the President and that the tapes would be sealed and stored in the Presidential Library for 50 years. It was her belief that any sooner and the events would still be too fresh but that 50 years would include a generation that would still be much interested in hearing about that period of history.

Shortly before the 50 year mark was approaching, Caroline Kennedy and her surviving family members discussed the publishing of the interview tapes and felt it would be fitting to release the tapes on the 50th anniversary of her father's inauguration. Caroline listened to the tapes and wrestled with the way in which some of the things her mother said all those years ago could be interpreted. Caroline felt that some of the statements her mother made were not reflective of the beliefs she held later in her life. In the end, Caroline felt it would bear more scrutiny and possible misinterpretation if any of the interview notes were redacted and thus she agreed to release them uncut. The benefit of the transcript is that there have been footnotes added to clarify events that were being referred to as well as who was being referred to when only a first name was used. Her eloquent introduction to her mother's candid and personal reflections of her time with Jack as a wife and confidant is especially moving. It is a treat to be able to hear Jackie speak on such sensitive topics while still in mourning, all to fulfill her wish to preserve something for her husband's legacy.