A Couple of Book Reviews

Hope everyone's week is going well.  Haven't listed the house yet because we have to get the final okay from the relo company.  What a production that is!  Our last move, eleven years ago was a piece of cake in comparison to the information required today.  Or maybe it just seems that way because I am eleven years older.

Here is a review of two books:  one that I read and one that I listened to via the audio version.

They were the original power couple— outlandishly rich, impossibly attractive, and endlessly fascinating. Now, in this rare, behind-the-scenes portrait of the Kenne­dys in their final year together, #1New York Times bestselling biographer Christopher Andersen shows us a side of JFK and Jackie we’ve never seen before. Tender, intimate, complex, and, at times, explosive, theirs is a love story unlike any other—filled with secrets, scandals, and bomb­shells that could never be fully revealed . . . until now. Including:  

·         Stunning new details about the Kennedys’ rumored affairs—hers as well as his—and how they ultimately overcame all odds to save their marriage  

·         The president’s many premonitions of his own death, and how he repeatedly tried to pull out of his last fateful trip to Dallas  

·         Shocking revelations about how the couple, unaware of the dangers, became dependent on amphetamine injections, the real reason— according to his longtime personal physician— for JFK’s notorious libido, and how the White House hid his many serious medical problems from the public  

·         How the tragic death of their infant son Patrick led to an emotional outpouring from the president that surprised even their closest friends—and brought JFK and Jackie closer than they had ever been

·         Touching firsthand accounts of the family’s most private moments, before and after the assassination  

Drawing on hundreds of interviews conducted with the Kennedys’ inner circle—from family members and lifelong friends to key advisors and political confidantes—Andersen takes us deeper inside the world of the president and his first lady than ever before. Unsparing yet sym­pathetic, bigger than life but all too real, These Few Precious Days captures the ups and downs of a marriage, a man, and a woman, the memories of which will continue to fascinate and inspire for generations to come.

~Amazon


Being the self professed Kennedyphile that I am, I was extremely excited about this book because it received very favorable reviews.  To put the cherry on top, Hoda of the Kathy Lee and Hoda duo said that she picked it up in an airport and loved it.

I was not disappointed.  Christopher Andersen included some never before seen great family photos along with a few sweet untold stories of the beautiful, infamous couple known as Jack and Jackie.

Andersen was open about the President's many dalliances and yet avoided judgement.  The author illustrates the story of a marriage that matures through time.  During his final days, President Kennedy's marriage was enriched with love and general respect for his much adored wife. It was prompted by their mutual sadness and grief over their infant son, Patrick's death.

Every time I read a book about JFK the same question comes to mind.  The President was suffering from Addisons Disease and was almost always in constant pain in his back.  I always wonder how he had the stamina to engage in so many affairs.  Then again, he was a man.

If you love the Camelot era, this is a great book.  If you're not a big fan of the Kennedys - skip it.  You will get the motherlode of Jack and Jackie on TV following up to the 50th anniversary of JFK's death in November.

*****

Mindy Kaling has lived many lives: the obedient child of immigrant professionals, a timid chubster afraid of her own bike, a Ben Affleck–impersonating Off-Broadway performer and playwright, and, finally, a comedy writer and actress prone to starting fights with her friends and coworkers with the sentence “Can I just say one last thing about this, and then I swear I’ll shut up about it?” 
 
Perhaps you want to know what Mindy thinks makes a great best friend (someone who will fill your prescription in the middle of the night), or what makes a great guy (one who is aware of all elderly people in any room at any time and acts accordingly), or what is the perfect amount of fame (so famous you can never get convicted of murder in a court of law), or how to maintain a trim figure (you will not find that information in these pages). If so, you’ve come to the right book, mostly!
 
~ Amazon


My #2 and I listened to this book, read by the author, on our way to Virginia.  It was a great choice.  We both appreciate Kaling's self-depreciating, somewhat sly, sarcastic humor. 

Mindy Kaling chronicles her childhood being lovingly raised by a mother who is an OB/GYN and a father who's an architect.  She's got great tales about high school and all of her first dates.  Kaling throws in funny stories about her days writing and acting in The Office.

All in all, it was a great choice for a long car ride.  Because it was narrated in Kaling's nasally, monotone voice it made it that much funnier.  #1 read it in book form on our cruise and enjoyed it but not as much as we did listening to it.


 
Happy Thursday!