Audiobook Review: Mrs. Kennedy and Me by Clint Hill

Mrs. Kennedy and Me
by Clint Hill (Compact Disc 973.922 Hil)

Clint Hill was a Secret Service agent on the protection team of President Eisenhower and fully expected to be assigned to that of the newly-elected President, John F. Kennedy. Instead, he was assigned to the First Lady, Jacqueline Bouvier Kennedy. He initially considered this a come-down from the prestige of being on the presidential team, but after several weeks he came to enjoy his time with her.

If you’re seeking a gossipy, tell-all book this is not it. This story begins after JFK wins the election and continues in a chronological format of their travels together, including Hill’s background as an orphan in North Dakota. You learn a bit about the life of a secret service agent, and the guilt he carried with him after JFK was assassinated.

I listened to the CD version, and the reader (Jeremy Bobb) did a wonderful job. This felt more like a sit-down with Hill while he casually chatted about his experiences. At the same time, I also had the book and browsed through it for the photos. To my mind, a good biography will have a photo section and this one had photos every few pages throughout the book.

This is best read by someone familiar with JFK and Jackie. For example, JFK and Bobby Kennedy warning Hill, before her trip to Greece, that Aristotle Onassis was not to have any association with Mrs. Kennedy would be lost on a first-time reader beginning their study of her.

I found this to be very interesting, with stories I had not heard before.

[If you enjoy this, you may also wish to try What Remains: A Memoir of Fate, Friendship, and Love by Carole Radziwill, widow of Anthony Radziwill, cousin to JFK, Jr.]

[ official Mrs. Kennedy and Me page on the official Clint Hill web site ]

See Charlotte M.’s review of What Remains: A Memoir of Fate, Friendship and Love, here on BookGuide in February 2006

Recommended by Charlotte M.
Bennett Martin Public Library

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