This book is not new. In fact, it was published in 2012. However, I hadn’t heard of it until my sister mentioned she was reading a book about the Kennedy sisters in law that she couldn’t put down. I immediately purchased it for our trip to Mexico and am so thankful I did.
Women of Camelot
I don’t consider myself a fan of the Kennedy family, but I’m definitely intrigued by their dynasty. Jackie, especially, interests me. Her style, her intelligence, her grace…her strange marriage to Onassis.
Here’s a snippet from Amazon:
Jacqueline Bouvier. Ethel Skakel. Joan Bennett. Three women who married into America’s royal family and became forever linked in legend.
Set against the panorama of explosive American history, this unique story offers a rarely-seen look at the relationship shared among the three women — during the Camelot years and beyond. Whether dealing with their husbands’ blatant infidelities, stumping for their many political campaigns, touring the world to promote their family’s legacy, raising their children, or confronting death, the Kennedy wives did it all with grace, style and dignity.
I devoured this book on our trip. I carried it with me everywhere and read a few pages whenever I could. One glorious afternoon I got to read uninterrupted on a beach for over an hour. HEAVEN. I knew quite a bit about Jackie, but I wasn’t familiar with Joan and Ethel other than just the basics. RFK Jr’s current presidential bid added to the allure of this book. It’s a very timely read.
Regardless of your political views, there’s no denying the Kennedys are one of the most famous (infamous?) American families. Purchase here: https://amzn.to/47VHoaR
Political theory is largely omitted from the novel with the focus on the people, which is what interests me. The anecdotes and behind the scenes style reminds me of one of my other favorite novels, The Residence, by Kate Anderson Brower. It’s stories told by the staff of the White House, many of whom served multiple First Families. It’s as juicy as Jackie, Ethel, Joan.
A remarkable history with elements of both In the President’s Secret Service and The Butler, The Residence offers an intimate account of the service staff of the White House, from the Kennedys to the Obamas.
America’s First Families are unknowable in many ways. No one has insight into their true character like the people who serve their meals and make their beds every day. In her runaway bestseller, former White House correspondent Kate Andersen Brower pulls back the curtain on the world’s most famous address. Full of stories and details by turns dramatic, humorous, and heartwarming, The Residence reveals daily life in the White House as it is really lived through the voices of the maids, butlers, cooks, florists, doormen, engineers, and others who tend to the needs of the President and First Family.
These dedicated professionals maintain the six-floor mansion’s 132 rooms, 35 bathrooms, 28 fireplaces, three elevators, and eight staircases, and prepare everything from hors d’oeuvres for intimate gatherings to meals served at elaborate state dinners. Over the course of the day, they gather in the lower level’s basement kitchen to share stories, trade secrets, forge lifelong friendships, and sometimes even fall in love.
Combining incredible first-person anecdotes from extensive interviews with scores of White House staff members—many speaking for the first time—with archival research, Kate Andersen Brower tells their story. She reveals the intimacy between the First Family and the people who serve them, as well as tension that has shaken the staff over the decades. From the housekeeper and engineer who fell in love while serving President Reagan to Jackie Kennedy’s private moment of grief with a beloved staffer after her husband’s assassination to the tumultuous days surrounding President Nixon’s resignation and President Clinton’s impeachment battle, The Residence is full of surprising and moving details that illuminate day-to-day life at the White House.
Purchase here: https://amzn.to/4adB3cX
The Residence
Happy reading! I encourage you to explore these books during this crazy election season.
