GRACE AND POWER The Private World of the Kennedy White House

An inside account of the Kennedy White House provides an intimate glimpse into lives of the Kennedys. Sally Bedell Smith interviewed numerous friends and former lovers, and pored through documents, to craft a fascinating portrait of a White House that makes the Clinton era seem puritanical. Anne Twomey's reading is superb, using just the right delicate balance. This is a difficult book to perform because the material ranges from the sensitive--Jackie Kennedy invited women to parties based upon the President's "preferences"--to the politically interesting--Lyndon Johnson's decided to accept the vice presidential nomination because so many presidents had died in office. The lives, loves, medical conditions, and personalities of the Kennedy White House are well represented. D.J.S. (c) AudioFile 2004, Portland, Maine [Published: OCT/ NOV 04]