About the Book

Jackie & Me by Louis Bayard

Genre: Historical Fiction

Publication Date: June 14, 2022

Book Review

A charming reflection on young Jackie and Jack from the point of view of the best friend you’ve never heard of, Lem.

Lem became best friends with John F. Kennedy, known as Jack, in college and soon began summering with the Kennedys. When Jack asks him to help entertain the young Jackie during his busy senate career, Lem is not sure how serious Jack is about her. But he soon falls under the spell of a young Jackie O, albeit more in a chaste way, as the book strongly hints that Lem is gay. This Jackie still has a multitude of ways her life could have turned out, as she works hard as a newspaper columnist and enjoys all the art and fashion New York has to offer a girl of her station. As time goes on, it seems like Jackie is auditioning for the Kennedys, not the absent Jack. The more Jack ignores her, the more Jackie seems to look for any tiny scrap of meaning in their few interactions. One knows what Jack sees in Jackie: a beautiful woman of a certain social standing who’s ready to stand in the background at political gatherings. In fact, at one point, young Jackie goes to the newspaper archives and pulls all the pictures of political wives from the past two years, studying their facial expressions, stance, and above all, their clothes. But it’s less clear what Jackie sees in Jack.

This book reveals all the flaws of Jack and Jackie and their upbringing without judging them for any of them. It also shows how Lem, absent any family or romantic partners of his own, clings to the Kennedys, finding ways to become indispensable to each new generation. Lem reflects back on his love for both and how it lost him the place of intimate confidant for both as Jackie and Jack’s interests eventually no longer align. Lem spends his life studying the enigmatic Kennedys.

For anyone who’s ever been fascinated by portraits of Jackie and tales of Camelot, this book explores the creation of a power couple and all the complications that ensue.

Thank you to the publisher for the advance review copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.