SOCIAL SCIENCES

After Camelot

A Personal History of the Kennedy Family 1968 to the Present
by J. Randy Taraborrelli
After Camelot: A Personal History of the Kennedy Family 1968 to the Present. Grand Central. Apr. 2012. c.624p. index. ISBN 9780446553902. $29.99. BIOG
COPY ISBN
Popular biographer and journalist Taraborrelli (Michael Jackson: The Madness, the Magic, the Whole Story) presents his second book on the Kennedy family after Jackie, Ethel, Joan: Women of Camelot. Through extensive interviews with Kennedy staffers, friends, and family members, he tells the intertwining personal stories of members of JFK's extended family up to Edward Kennedy's death in 2009. He fills out the saga with many flashbacks to years before 1968, providing a fuller picture than the subtitle implies. In 24 parts, most of them centered around one member of the clan, he keeps readers deeply engaged with a comfortable, almost novelistic, style including much dialog (although there are several pages of source notes at the back, the quoted conversations are not fully traced). Despite the story's many tragic angles, it's also one about family loyalty, joy, and closeness.
VERDICT Taraborrelli shows what makes the Kennedy legacy so enduring. His book, not aimed at academics, will appeal both to those long fascinated with the Kennedys and those new to following them, as well as readers more generally interested in American political and social history over these years. [See Prepub Alert, 10/21/11.]
Reviewed by Laura Krier, California Digital Lib., Oakland , Apr 15, 2012
Comment Policy:
  • Be respectful, and do not attack the author, people mentioned in the article, or other commenters. Take on the idea, not the messenger.
  • Don't use obscene, profane, or vulgar language.
  • Stay on point. Comments that stray from the topic at hand may be deleted.
  • Comments may be republished in print, online, or other forms of media.
  • If you see something objectionable, please let us know. Once a comment has been flagged, a staff member will investigate.

RELATED 

NONFICTION

The Church of Stop Shopping and Religious Activism: Combatting Consumerism and Climate Change Through Performance
by González, George
NONFICTION

Not My Type: Automating Sexual Racism in Online Dating
by Williams, Apryl
NONFICTION

When We Sold God’s Eye: Diamonds, Murder, and a Clash of Worlds in the Amazon
by Cuadros, Alex
NONFICTION

Blood and Lightning: On Becoming a Tattooer
by Kiskaddon, Dustin
REFERENCE

The Transgender Encyclopedia
by Pickett, Brent L.
NONFICTION

Southern by the Grace of God: Religion, Race, and Civil Rights in Hollywood’s American South
by Hunt, Megan
More
ALREADY A SUBSCRIBER?

We are currently offering this content for free. Sign up now to activate your personal profile, where you can save articles for future viewing

ALREADY A SUBSCRIBER?