Jacqueline Kennedy, The White House Years
Thayer, Mary Van Rensselaer. Jacqueline Kennedy, The White House Years. Fourth Printing. 1971. Book is in very good condition; dust jacket is in very good minus condition—jacket shows mild discoloration.
President Kennedy famously remarked that he was the man who had accompanied Jacqueline Kennedy to Paris. The joke contained more than a grain of truth. As this book recounts, it was Mrs. Kennedy’s charm, cultural sophistication, and diplomatic skill that persuaded France to loan the Mona Lisa to the United States, an achievement many had thought impossible. That episode serves as a useful metaphor for her years as First Lady. Through her love of books, history, the arts, and historic preservation, she transformed what had often been a ceremonial role into a form of cultural diplomacy, elevating both the White House and America’s image abroad. Is this book a hagiography? Undoubtedly. Yet the essence of its argument remains difficult to dispute. Jacqueline Kennedy understood that prestige is a form of power, and she wielded it exceptionally well.
“The most acclaimed of all Kennedy era state guests was not honored at a White House dinner. Yet she was more eagerly awaited and more enthusiastically received than any other visitor. She was the Mona Lisa.”
--Mary Van Rensselaer