Jacqueline Bouvier Kennedy Onassis: The Untold Story

by Barbara Leaming

The untold story of how one woman’s life was changed forever in a matter of seconds by a horrific trauma.

Barbara Leaming’s extraordinary and deeply sensitive biography is the first book to document Jacqueline Kennedy Onassis’ brutal, lonely and valiant thirty-one year struggle with post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) that followed JFK’s assassination.

Here is the woman as she has never been seen before. In heartrending detail, we witness a struggle that unfolded at times before our own eyes, but which we failed to understand.

Leaming’s biography also makes clear the pattern of Jackie’s life as a whole. We see how a spirited young woman’s rejection of a predictable life led her to John F. Kennedy and the White House, how she sought to reconcile the conflicts of her marriage and the role she was to play, and how the trauma of her husband’s murder which left her soaked in his blood and brains led her to seek a very different kind of life from the one she’d previously sought.

A life story that has been scrutinized countless times, seen here for the first time as the serious and important story that it is. A story for our times at a moment when we as a nation need more than ever to understand the impact of trauma.

Genres: Biography, Nonfiction, History, Biography Memoir, Audiobook, American History, Politics

368 pages, ebook

First published October 28, 2014

About the author

Barbara Leaming is the author of “Kick Kennedy: The Charmed Life and Tragic Death of the Favorite Kennedy Daughter” (Thomas Dunne Books, April 12, 2016). She has written three New York Times bestsellers, including her recent book “Jacqueline Bouvier Kennedy Onassis”. Leaming’s book “Churchill Defiant” received The Emery Reves Award from the International Churchill Centre. Her groundbreaking biography of America's 35th President, “Jack Kennedy: The Education of a Statesman” was the first to detail the lifelong influence of British history and culture and especially of Winston Churchill on JFK. Her articles have appeared in the New York Times Magazine, Vanity Fair, the Times of London and other periodicals. She lives in Connecticut.

www.facebook.com/barbara.leaming1

Reviews

[Tracy · Rating 2 out of 5]

This book was very difficult to finish! The editing was some of the worse I have ever seen! The run-on sentences are so long they actually should be paragraphs! I had to re-read sections many times to try to figure out what point the author is making!
Outside of the awful editing, the authors theory that Mrs.Kennedy suffered from PTSD is probably very accurate. It sure puts to shame all of the trashy tabloids, articles and books criticising her and mocking her behaviour and choices for the past 50+ years! It absolutely explains many of her choices that so many mocked her for after the tragic loss of her husband. I believe this theory will stop those who judge her with mocking and contempt and instead give light to compassion and empathy for a woman who lead a nation through one of its darkest hours!

[Laura · Rating 5 out of 5]

I am glad that this book was cancelled for the book club, it is a very intense book about Jacqueline Bouvier Kennedy Onassis and her life with John F. Kennedy, before and after the Presidential assassination. I have read several books about her, but nothing quite like this. This book extensively digs into the assassination and the aftermath of her PTSD in the years that followed her until her death. This book really makes you feel empathetic to her and what she went though. I do like the authors research in the background of Jacqueline and the years that followed her. This book was hard to get through sometimes and I found myself tearing up during most of it. I could only imagine what she went through into seeing the love of her life getting assassinated. She was a National treasure, a clothing trendsetter, and a very beautiful woman. I highly recommend this book and think this book makes a wonderful addition to any library.

[Louise · Rating 4 out of 5]

While the blurbs and reviews of the book say it's about Jackie Kennedy's PTSD, this is less than ½ of the book. It is a more general emotional biography of Jacqueline Bouvier Kennedy Onassis.

There is a good description of Jackie and her family's unique social position. Her mother's second marriage brought her standing but no wealth. Author, Barbara Leaming, shows how dating, flirting and false relationships were the norm at this time as girls hid their talents and subordinated their interests to boys. The author shows how Jackie did this with Jack. She did not show him that her knowledge of French history was greater than his and arranged it so that he would have to come to her.

She gave up a beau offering a stable but boring life, for Jack Kennedy who showed all the signs of excitement to come. Little did Jackie know what was in store. She was chosen not for love, but because she had poise, style, the right religion and enough pedigree to fill the bill.

The marriage is characterized by emotional abuse. New, to me, in this story is Jack's serious attraction to a 21 year old Gunilla von Post, whom he travels to Sweden to visit not long after the wedding. JFK is constantly on the prowl, leaving Jackie to cover for herself and for him when he leaves formal social events for trysts. He is not present often and when together, she is an asset more than a wife. A lot of hurt for Jackie preceded the awful day in Dallas.

The latter half of the book shows her reaction to the tragedy inclusive of why she wore the blood stained Chanel suit (a "line for line copy" says Leaming) all the way from Dallas to Washington. Jackie's obsession with the Manchester book (The Death of a President: November 1963) shows her need to control the tragedy and and her relations with Bobby Kennedy were the need to share it with some also suffering from loss. There are examples of anger, depression and irrationality.

I always figured she married Onassis for protection for her children, but it does not appear that they are part of her life. Leaming only shows that she was seeking safety for herself. At one point she even requests less secret service protection for Carolyn and John. There is a good description of the Onassis marriage and how it did and didn't provide what she needed and what it meant for both parties.

There are some big holes in the story. There is more about Jack Kennedy's back and health problems than about Jackie's relationship with her children. How did she explain the tragedy to them? How did they respond to her grief and she to theirs? Leaming says the Warren Commission's bullet theory was "certainly was not how she remembered it". If she addressed this in her testimony why was it ignored? There is a one line mention of "a moment" (my quotes) with John Warnecke who designed the JFK grave site. Was this unguarded moment or something common for her in this period? The post Onassis life is given short shrift given that it is longer than the two marriages together. We do not know who she thinks killed her husband, and who she thinks she needs protection from.

In the end, there is a quote, fascinating on many levels. She tells her son that if his father were to return she might "send him away". There is no context, especially since we know nothing of her relationship with John, Jr. Was she finally able to feel the hurt of her husband's many affairs and their sham marriage? Or did she merely mean if she could do it all over, she'd marry someone else to avoid the tragedy? How do we know she said this (it is not footnoted) and if she did, why would she say this to a son who lost his father before he could know him? Leaming has some comments on how this relates to PTSD, but they are not clear. I think quote is more relevant to the mother -son relationship, whatever it may be.

Despite the gaps, the book is absorbing. It succeeds in defining the emotions and violence of this period. Standing in Jackie's shoes we re-experience 3 assassinations of key leaders and the Vietnam War which tore families and friendships apart. I don't know of another book that attempts to give an emotional history like this. Books like Bush or Obama on the Couch give a psychological profile and show how it can predict decisions and leadership style. In this book the author is going for something deeper and more difficult, the story of how a trauma shapes a psychology and a life.

[Elaine · Rating 4 out of 5]

Thoroughly enjoyed this account of Jackie's life after the assassination of JFK. It was very insightful to be able to see how that horrible event affected her. Suffering from post traumatic stress disorder( PTSD) before the term was even known she attempted to soldier on. It is easy to criticise her and forget that she witnessed one of the most traumatic and horrific things imaginable. For someone that was always known to be a very private person, even putting assurances in place after her death not to have her private letters and writings published, this book delves quite deeply into her life and allows us to see the all too human and vulnerable side of a woman well known for her stoicism.

[Dolores · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book is the first to explain how Jackie Kennedy fought posttraumatic stress disorder for thirty-one years. In 1964 there wasn't even a name for what she was enduring....not until 1980 was it included in the American Psychiatric Association's official manual of mental disorders. As time went by she finally got some control over the terrifying memories and, when asked what she considered her greatest achievement, she replied: "I think it is that after going through a rather difficult time, I consider myself comparatively sane. I am proud of that."

The first part of the story, covering her rather complicated family, early life, "fairy tale" marriage (with its many problems), and her transformation into a unique First Lady was very interesting. I learned many things I didn't know before, and the whole book was engrossing. I think many people judged her harshly over the years, not understanding the gravity of her condition....I am so glad she was finally able to attain a peaceful and fulfilling life. I recommend this book highly.

[Joseph Sciuto · Rating 5 out of 5]

One of the saddest statistics that have come to light during our misguided adventures in Iraq and Afghanistan is that suicides among returning veterans of these two wars is far greater than the number of service members killed in combat.

The keeping of statistics on returning veterans who have committed suicide after fighting for their country is a relatively new thing...so we have have no statistics of suicides among veterans after returning from Vietnam, Korea, World War 2, etc...

Post Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) wasn't considered a psychological disorder until the early 1980's.

Ms. Leaming's, "Jacqueline Bouvier Kennedy Onassis: The Untold Story," is a fascinating analysis of Mrs. Kennedy's behavior after the assassination of her husband, President Kennedy, in Dallas on November of 1963. Relying on interviews, first hand accounts of her sudden mood changes, and her behavior for most of life after the death of the President, Mrs Leaming's makes a convincing, yet very sad case, that she suffered from PTSD for most of her life and up until her death at the age of sixty-four.

Her marriage to Mr. Onassis, which many saw as a gold digger going after a rich, older man's immense wealth, is explained in a way which contradicts the notion that Mrs. Kennedy was a gold digger. First, Mrs. Kennedy was quite wealthy and secondly, she had a number of extremely rich, younger men who had previously proposed to her. What these younger rich men didn't have was their own island like Mr. Onassis. One of the signs of PTSD is one's desire to be alone, to be in areas that are viewed as safe and Mrs. Kennedy throughout her life after the assassination desired safety and being left alone or among people and situations that she deemed safe.

If one had told me that I would be reading a biography on Mrs. Kennedy, just six months ago, I would have said that is highly unlikely. Not that I have anything against Mrs. Kennedy but because I have read so many books about the Kennedys' that I didn't think I needed to know more about her than I already knew.

What changed my mind was two books I have recently read that were not about her, but where she loomed large in such a positive, intelligent, and caring way that I felt I needed to know more about this fascinating, often misunderstood, American icon.

[Shannon · Rating 4 out of 5]

I can't get this book off my mind. Prior to reading it, I knew two things about Jackie O.: 1. She was married to JFK. 2. She was a fashion icon. I feel slightly embarrassed that that is all I knew about her, but I’m a few too many decades removed from the assassination and I was only 7 when she died. I have no living memory of her or, obviously, JFK. I also grew up in the conservative south. The Kennedy family isn’t worshiped here like it is in New England.

With those things said, I found the book mesmerizing. The first half of the book recapped Jackie’s life up until 11/22/63. It was interesting to read about her head debutante days, her schooling, her broken family, and her desire to marry someone adventurous—not boring and predictable. Enter Jack. I guess I knew more about Jackie than the two things listed above. I knew that her husband was a womanizer. I just didn’t realize how much so until reading this book (Mr. President had girls lined up all over the globe). Jackie apparently knew of his philandering but that aspect of their marriage, and really the personal dynamics of their marriage in general, is never explored. Her relationships with RFK, Bob McNamara, and LBJ were more flushed out and detailed than her relationship with her first husband.

The book took a dark turn once the assassination occurred in Jackie's young life. Both the assassination and the days following were described in disturbing detail. Putting myself in Jackie’s blood stained shoes both during that time and the decades that followed was a gut wrenching experience as a reader. Barbara Leaming’s main aim, for better or worse, was to highlight the PTSD Jackie experienced the rest of her life (before PTSD was a recognized medical condition), and she did a powerful job of conveying the anguish Jackie went through. I could feel how scared she was for her own life and (somewhat) understand the decisions she made out of self-preservation.

I recommend this book if you are interested in a different take on Jackie O, PTSD, or the Kennedys. I’d recommend reading a different biography of Jackie if you don’t know anything about her. Since I didn’t know much going in, this book left me with a rather cold impression of her which I believe is attributable to Leaming’s focus on Jackie’s PTSD. Regardless of that, the book kept me enthralled and gave me historical and psychological perspectives I didn’t have prior to reading.

[Darla · Rating 3 out of 5]

Actually more like a 3.5. I have always been fascinated by Jackie O. This book did a great job of showing the effects of that terrible day on the rest of Jackie's life. Interesting glimpses into what is was like to be in her shoes. Got a bit bogged down in all the historical data on supporting characters. Some of it seemed to be unnecessary. Glad I read it and I do plan to read Barbara's book entitled "Mrs. Kennedy" now to see Jackie's life from the vantage point covered there.

[Michelle · Rating 5 out of 5]

The US changed in an instant when President John F. Kennedy (1917-1963) was assassinated on November 22, 1963 in Dallas Texas. Our nation would never be the same, as we deeply mourned the loss of our 35th president. Americans felt sorrow for his widow, yet Jackie wasn't really the focus, until this revelatory new book: "Jacqueline Bouvier Kennedy Onassis: The Untold Story" authored by historian/scholar Barbara Leaming.

In 1963 PTSD was simply known as "shell shock", the condition described the minds of returning veterans impacted by the shock, horror/terror of war. In 1980 PTSD was added to the DSM by the American Psychiatric Association. Today, much more is known and recognized about PTSD, Leaming suggests that Jackie was likely affected with the disorder following JFK's assassination.
It was unclear how Jackie would ever get past the tragic memory recall of holding JFK's shattered head in her lap. There were no grief counselors available, nor did she visit a therapist. People appointed Jackie as a national heroine, standing vigils in the winter cold. Jackie had no desire to be a public figure, and resented the public praise/attention of her conduct, wishing to be left alone. Traffic and people clogged the streets, tour busses arrived, over 10,000 people visited JFK's grave at Arlington National Cemetery daily.
Jackie was counseled/consoled by Father McSorley- (he recorded their talks in his diary, which came to light in 2003 with the publication of another Kennedy book). The magnitude of her grief was profound, she questioned him about suicide, even praising the death of Marilyn Monroe: who escaped her misery. "Was it wrong to pray to die?" she asked. Jackie felt she may have been able to save JFK, if only she had known. No amount of vodka could ease her grief.

Unable to participate in the Manchester tape recorded interviews, Bobby usually represented her, at least at first. Jackie had to recall the assassination multiple times over for official interviews. In 1964 she would meet with the Warren Commission for historical documentation, this was a grueling process. The true nature of their marriage, JFK's extramarital affairs, were known only to select insiders. Jackie would protect JFK's sterling public image, she may have felt it was in her best interest to do so. Unflattering things and facts were carefully covered up.

Every negative preconceived idea/notion of Jackie being regarded as a reserved uppity snob, caring only about her privacy is challenged. Her 1968 marriage to Aristotle Onassis, the public judgment and harsh criticism must be reconsidered. Barbara Leaming illustrates Jackie's humanity in a way that hasn't been previously considered. This is a meaningful and important book, the story beautifully written like a novel.

[Jean · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is Barbara Leaming’s third Kennedy biography. The first third of the book recycles considerable material from the first biography minus the dubious theories. Learning’s major fault as a biographer is her tendency to mind read. In this biography learning has considerable documentation from a variety of sources. The author details after the assassination how Bobby Kennedy and Lyndon Johnson sought to comfort her and to use her politically.

The main or key thrust of Leaming’s book is her claim that Jackie had PTSD (post-traumatic stress disorder). She documents the clinical symptoms including flashbacks, insomnia, numbness, avoidance, fear, depression and anger. The author also points out that the condition was not medically recognized until 1980. The author claims Jackie fought her way back to good mental health through her work in publishing and her contributions to land mark preservation. The author documents that Jackie’s Sister Lee Radziwell told that Bobby Kennedy’s assassination triggered a recurrence of the PTSD in Jackie. When the British poet Stephen Spender asked in 1980, about her greatest achievement, she told him, “I think it is that after going through a rather difficult time, I consider myself comparatively sane, I am proud of that.”

One of the iconic women of the 20th century, Jackie Kennedy, is such an interesting story and how her life and that of the country was dramatically changed on the terrible day in Dallas. According to the author Jackie spent the rest of her life attempting to heal from that horrific day in Dallas. I read this as an audio book downloaded from Audible. Eliza Foss did a good job narrating the book.

[Linda Burnham · Rating 4 out of 5]

The fact that it took me 4 (otherwise very busy) months to finish this book belies my great enjoyment in reading it. One always tends to hesitate to use words like 'enjoy' when the subject matter is as harrowing as this at times was although it is undoubtedly a compelling read.
I have always been drawn to Jacqueline Bouvier Kennedy Onassis; her style, her fame, her mystique and her steadfast commitment to doing things her own way, although I have to admit that I had, over the years, given little thought to the emotions and feelings of this woman.
Oh, like countless others I admired her strength at JFK's funeral but I had never until this book, considered her suffering from what we now know as PTSD. Never thought of what it was actually like to be in the midst of the horror and bloodshed of Dallas or of the torment of second guessing her actions, of the "if only's" that would haunt her for decades to come. I never understood her reasoning for going from being Mrs John F Kennedy, beloved and admired widow of the slain president and torch bearer for "Camelot ", to being the virtually despised Mrs Aristotle Onassis. Never considered that her tendency toward reclusiveness could be to avoid triggers for the waking nightmares that were the legacy of Dallas.
This is indeed the untold story of Jacqueline, well researched and told with sympathy and although I suspect she would be horrified at the world knowing so much about her, I for one am exceedingly glad that I do and I admire her and feel for her all the more because of it.

[Erin · Rating 2 out of 5]

DNF, although I got close (maybe 50 pages or so from the end)

This book is, for lack of a better word, thorough. It's also pretty dense writing - long sentences, long paragraphs, lots of details. For me it contained a little too much detail about people along the periphery of Jackie's life and not quite enough about her actual experiences. I think if you were really interested in her connections with others, particularly leading up to and during JFK's presidency, this might be a book you would enjoy.

[Socraticgadfly · Rating 5 out of 5]

I know that more than a few psychologists and psychiatrists have made a forensic diagnosis of PTSD of Jackie O, and a few writers have discussed it in brief, but, to the best of my knowledge, this is the first book-length treatment of the idea, and a very good one.

The book focuses on the period from Jack's death to Bobby's, with some treatment of her marriage to Aristotle Onassis, then a brief wrap-up, and her childhood in front.

Several takeaways, related to but not limited to, the PTSD angle:

1. Her biological father, Black Jack Bouvier, was just as much a philanderer as JFK, and she knew it, by the time of prep school, even asking him if he'd bedded any of her classmates' moms. So, per the old adage about marriage, that men marry expecting their wives to stay the same and women marry expecting to change their husbands, with a dash of quasi-Freudian thought, did she marry Jack, subconsciously, if not consciously, hoping to "tame" him?

2. "Death of a President" author William Manchester apparently had PTSD himself, tho the term was not used at the time, from his WWII experience at Okinawa. (His military medical file mentions "scars on his brain" or similar, per the author.) He had not worked through it until his 1980 memoir, and Leaming makes a good case that, in writing this book, his crafting and narrative focus, and his interviews with Jackie, appear to be subconscious stirrings of his own PTSD.

3. Leaming discusses how Jackie also tried to navigate political tugs of war between RFK and LBJ, and how she really kind of liked LBJ, despite some ideas to the contrary.

3A. She really leaned on McNamara a lot during these years.

Anyway, that's enough of a sketch. It's a good book.

[Dana Burda · Rating 5 out of 5]

Cartea scriitoarei americane Barbara Leaming, specialistă în scrierea biografiilor personalităților artistice și politice, intitulată atât de sugestiv " Jacqueline Bouvier Kennedy Onassis / Povestea nespusă" a apărut în anul 2016 la editura Corint / Istorie în traducerea lui Lidia Grădinaru și cu o prefață de istoricul Diana Mandache. Este una dintrea cele mai bune și interesante cărți dedicate soției președintelui J.F.Kenendy, a epocii cuprinse între 1945 și începutul anilor 90, o carte care merită să fie citită atât de iubitorii de istorie cât și de publicul larg. Filmul atât de bine nominalizat la premiile Oscar din februarie 2017 și intitulat " Jackie" are ca bază cartea Barbarei Leaming. Recenzia cărții o puteți găsi pe situl Literatura pe tocuri.

[Lynn · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was an interesting account of Jackie Kennedy Onassis' life. It tries to be a serious telling of her life while including many gossipy tidbits that one would find in a trashy biography. The author tires to put JKO's post assassination behavior through a filter of PTSD, either explaining or excusing her life choices with this "diagnosis." Some of it fits, and some of her actions are that of a spoiled, entitled selfish woman, tragedy aside. There are times when you are reading about what JKO went through, and you feel overwhelming compassion; other times you just want to roll your eyes and say "Suck it up, Buttercup!"
I'm not sure the author is qualified to diagnose JKO with PTSD, but it makes for an interesting theory and an interesting read; much different from many of the other JKO bios out there. Many things are glossed over in order to keep on track with the PTSD theme. For instance, her kids are hardly mentioned and she is portrayed as a very distant, almost cold mother. Sometimes you wonder where the author comes up with some of her information, but it's all documented in the back.
If you like reading about the Kennedys and especially about Jackie, you'll probably like this book. It's an interesting perspective if nothing else.

[Leonore · Rating 1 out of 5]

One of the most maddening books and I still wonder why I kept at it. I'll start with the good Is was wonderful to find out that Jackie's aloofness and standofishness was due to PTSD. This should have been recognized much sooner and she should have had the appropriate care sooner. This shoots her up in my respect and we as a country owe her an apology. So for this I thank this book. The only tangential person that was believable was Lyndon Johnson. On the otherhand the writing was abysmal. If I ever here those initials RFK, JFK (the only legitimate one is LBJ) I will scream. The author could not have lived through that time period when Kennedy was shot. No one referred to Bobby and President Kennedy that way. It was so grating on the nerves. Also she went off on tangents that didn't necessarily add a lot to understanding Jackie. It would have been nice to see her as a mother. There were just tiny glimpses. I also blame the author's editor who did an awful job cleaning this up. Don't waste your time reading this even if you are a Jackie fan get the "cliff notes"

[Iulia · Rating 3 out of 5]

cam de 3,5. scrisa usor comercial, ma asteptam la maui multa documentare si date/interviuri/fragmente din viata acestei femei si a primului ei sot. finalul abrupt, rece, fara emotie ...

[Carly W. · Rating 2 out of 5]

I love Jackie Kennedy, but this book was so hard to read in terms of the long, boring sentences and chapters. It took me so long to read this book because every time I tried to read it, I wanted to fall asleep; Jackie’s life is so interesting, but this writing didn’t do it justice whatsoever. Jackie was so strong and she went through so much aside from JFK’s assassination. The media tried to ruin her again and again, she just wanted to live her life. Anyway, I love Jackie she’s so slay.

[Tracy · Rating 3 out of 5]

I wasn't alive when Kennedy was assassinated, but I grew up with a copy of a book titled "Four Days," which told the story of the assassination. Jackie Bouvier Kennedy Onassis was at that point considered an international media and fashion icon and was about to transform herself in to a savvy publisher. So like many of my generation, I was sold the myth of Jackie as a courageous woman who held the country together during those terrible days of November 1963 with her brave face and almost regal bearing. But what was really going on behind that black veil?

Leaming's thesis focused on Jackie as a victim of PTSD - a disorder that was only formally recognized in the 1980s. And yes, it makes a lot of sense - after all, this was a woman who literally sat next to her husband as he was brutally murdered, who was climbing on a moving car in search of fragments of his brain, was holding his bleeding head and body as he died. Certainly a traumatic experience that is just unimaginable to any of us. Leaming makes a very convincing case that Jackie never fully recovered from Dallas and found triggers all around her. Many of her actions and decisions are fairly typical of PTSD survivors and should be interpreted as such, rather than the popular image of Jackie as a rich, selfish socialite who refused to move on from tragedy. Of course, Jackie's situation brought about very unique pressures, ranging from the political ambitions of the Kennedy family to publishers - and even Jackie's own hand-picked author - wanting to tell the story of Dallas 1963. That said, Leaming also notes that Jackie had certain distinct advantages in her recovery process. I felt that Leaming made her case well and brought a fairly balanced perspective to the book.

So why three stars? First, remember that three stars is a solid, good read. Leaming's prose is generally good - but there were some points where her sentences ran on and could have been made more clean and concise by a strong editor (like Jackie?!?!) There are moments when Leaming is working hard to convey emotions and the results just felt a bit melodramatic. The theme of "Jackie's desire to run away" from certain official and social events doesn't fully square with the type of manners that had been most certainly been bred in to this unique woman. The book is also fairly short - Leaming is focusing on her specific hypothesis and the final two chapters - covering nearly 20 years of Jackie's life - are rather short and feel rushed. There is little discussion of the pressures inside the marriage to Onassis, particularly with his children. There are quotes from people who are now dead (including JFK Jr.) and unable to speak for themselves, and one always wonders if the interviewees who conveyed those quotes can be fully trusted.

Overall, I enjoyed the book and believe it enhanced my understanding of Jacqueline Bouvier Kennedy Onassis. Recommended, especially to those with an interest in JBKO and her family.

[Betty · Rating 3 out of 5]

I was highly anticipating the receipt of this book. Having worked quite a bit in the field of Post Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) debriefings, I wanted to read about how Jackie Kennedy Onassis dealt with her trauma in a time when PTSD was not even recognized. This book took a totally different slant on her life than any other book written about her.

However, I must say that the first 100 pages were so full of detailed minutiae that I found it extremely boring. I probably would not have continued reading the book except that I felt it a duty to write a review since I was given the book by the publishers. I finally just started skimming pages. The parts where Leaming writes about Jackie’s behavior was very interesting. Now that so much is known about PTSD it is clear that Jackie was definitely suffering from it. The book is raw in telling some not very likeable aspects of John and Jackie Kennedy’s personalities. I think much of the minutiae could have been left out. But I did grow to respect her in a way I never had before. She fought a disorder that can be totally devastating and have resulted in many suicides. She had to fight this on her own which takes a lot of strength.

I did not find the book at all emotional as some did. I suspect this was because I wasn’t so sure of her love for John. For those who love anything about the Kennedys, you will like it. For others, probably not so much.

[Morgan McComb · Rating 3 out of 5]

This book is filled with fresh insight on a woman I once thought I "knew" (for lack of a better word). The facts presented are enlightening and most certainly very interesting; however, my main issue with this book is its redundancy. Quotes the author deems particularly luminary she reinserts throughout the book from start to finish. Certain sentences, particularly in the closing of chapters, are almost identical. Sentences will often span the length of an entire paragraph with the help of superfluous commas, semicolons, etc. Paragraphs are, at times, droning, lengthy, and occasionally difficult to follow.

The book is an excellent read for anyone looking to explore beyond the pop culture phenomenon that is Jacqueline Kennedy Onassis in attempts to, as much as someone who never personally knew her can, know the woman instead; but the editing of this book leaves much to be desired.

[Sara Ray · Rating 5 out of 5]

Most women of my age followed the life of Jacqueline Kennedy Onassis. She was the darling of the media that both celebrated and vilified her. This is the most sympathetic account of Jackie's life that I have ever read. PTSD was not known in 1963. Grief and PTSD are very different. When we realize the trauma Mrs. Kennedy experienced in Dallas, how is it different from that of a soldier who sees a friend's head blown away? Soon after the the second Kennedy assassination of RFK, Jackie married Aristotle Onassis. Was she looking for wealth? The book contends that she was really looking for protection and escape from fear. With the understanding of PTSD that we have today, readers will view Jackie in a much more positive light.

[Connie · Rating 3 out of 5]

This book examines the life of Jackie Kennedy in greater detail than most -- and from the premise that, following JFK's assignation, she suffered from PTSD. First through, her pre-Kennedy and pre-assignation years are examined. The author details the relentless attention from the public and the relentless pull on her from others that kept her in turmoil. However, I found it odd (to say the least) that her children receive scant attention until the very end of the book. I felt any indepth analysis of her life and her battle with PTSD (at that time an unrecognized illness) fall short when her relationship with her children is ignored.

[Theresaharris · Rating 2 out of 5]

The story begins with much ado about nothing...not that Jackie was nothing; it's the author's presentation of trivial and vacuous details surrounding her vigorous pursuit of marriage to JFK. So many times I wondered if I could finish it... Perhaps better editing would have made the first part of the book more palatable.

The Untold Story includes personal characteristics of the subjects that perhaps should have remained untold?
It seems as though Americans have idolized a cast of obsessive and cunning fakes. Both Jacqueline and especially John F. Kennedy, viewed people as chess pieces to be controlled and manipulate.

[Karen · Rating 4 out of 5]

If you are a fan of the Kennedy's, and want to learn this author's views on Jackie's actions following the assassination of her husband, this book is for you. The author gives an interesting reassessment of Jackie's life. She attributes PTSD to Jackie's 31 year struggle to maintain control of her life, in a world that scrutinized her every move. In the book the author takes us through Jackie's life--from being idolized, scrutinized and finally empowered.

[Karen Miles · Rating 3 out of 5]

I have always wanted to find out more information about the Kennedys as they fascinate me as being seen as "royalty" in the United States. After reading this book, my knowledge of the Kennedys grew but not in ways that I expected. I was surprised to find out that the Kennedys were not the "role models" I had erroneously thought they were to be in the 1960s.

[Angela · Rating 3 out of 5]

For me, this book was too filled with things from the lives of the men in Jackie’s life. It’s hyper focus on Jack’s affairs (and little else in their complex relationship), in my opinion, does a disservice to Jackie’s pain after his death. The actually point of the book, her struggle with PTSD, didn’t start until almost halfway through. A good book, but it needed more guidance.

[Nayaab Khan · Rating 5 out of 5]

After reading this amazing book, I've become an avid fan of Jackie O. If you're an amateur in regards to Jackie, you'll learn absolutely everything there is to know in this amazing book. LOVE LOVE LOVE it.

[Adonica · Rating 5 out of 5]

A lot of insight to her struggles...

[Herman Plasmans · Rating 5 out of 5]

A very interesting book about post traumatic stress, also about Robert McNamarra and the Vietnam war