Dawn Tripp's Jackie is a beautiful and poetic novel about Jackie Kennedy Onassis's life. It emphasizes the complete person—writer, mother, First Lady, and widow. Unlike other biographies of Jackie O, Tripp's version is more insightful and not salacious.

It's told from the perspectives of Jackie and Jack, but mainly from Jackie's first-person viewpoint. Tripp gives a more intimate view of Jackie, revealing her innermost thoughts and emotions. Tripp highlights her childhood, her relationship with her father, her courtship and marriage to Jack, time in the White House, suffering through her husband’s death, fame, the cruel marriage to Onassis, her later writing career, and the importance of her children and grandchildren. However, the focus of the novel centers on the love story of Jackie and Jack.

I like how Tripp made Jackie an empathic character, an extraordinary woman yet ordinary. In explaining her life after Jack's death—"One day bleeds into the next--rise after not sleeping, smoke, coffee, wonder if the paper is safe to open, wake the children." We come to know the real Jackie in this novel—her hopes, dreams, struggles, sorrows, and relationships. I thank Net Galley for allowing me to read and review "Jackie." #NetGalley, #Jackie #biography

What a great book. Inspired by the life of Jackie Kennedy, Dawn Tripp has brought one of the best historical fiction books I’ve ever read. Mrs. Tripp has meticulously researched the life and and times of one of our most private but fascinating First Ladies. But what was her life really like. Finding herself as the Princess Diana of her era, married to a man she loves but finding out she was chosen as the perfect candidates wife. Did Jack love her? Could Jack be faithful to her? Those are questions she deals with. Until finally a tragedy of losing a child makes Jack see whats important. He realizes his anchor and heart belongs to Jackie. Tragically he is killed shortly after this. How does Jackie deal with all of this? How is her life effected? This book is an unputdownable glimpse into one of the most intriguing women in our nation’s history. I throughly loved it.

Dawn Tripp’s Jackie is a stunning accomplishment — a product of painstaking research, brilliant prose, and a generous and deep respect for her subject without a hint of celebrity worship, sensationalism, or salacious detail. The book follows the life of Jacqueline Kennedy Onassis from her earliest meetings with John F. Kennedy through her marriage and life with him, the devastating losses in her life (assassinations, plane crashes, the loss of two of her own children), her affair with and marriage to Aristotle Onassis (which many found inscrutable), and her return to New York and work at Doubleday. There is also, of course, her lifelong devotion to her children and later, grandchildren. But these are the events she lived through, what most of us know. What makes this book such a standout is the way Tripp weaves these events together with Jackie’s inner life — as conceived by the author, of course, but not without evidence. Moreover, Tripp’s sensitivity and gorgeous writing lend authority to a portrait of Jackie that I’ll never forget.

In her prefatory Author’s Note, Tripp makes her project clear: “There are many stellar, insightful nonfiction works written about Jackie. I believe that fiction, when it hews to the historical record, can access a different kind of truth, an experiential truth that allows us to enter the emotional heart of a story.” She notes that the historical record may always be incomplete, and truth is protean, subject to new information and changing perspectives.

Tripp asks us to ponder the place of a smart, intellectual, and passionate woman in a world shaped by and run by men. At one point, reacting to a scathing story in The Washington Post, Jackie thinks: “No one wants to know the real story—the private story—the evolution of a woman’s interior life. Rather, they tell the story of what happened to her, and in the world’s eyes, usually what happens to a woman is men.” Dawn Tripp has set out, I think, to set the record straight. Jackie was a woman with many loves, who knows that the public view of her is basically “Life with Jack Kennedy. Life with the Greek. Life as a woman who goes to work because she wants to.” She reflects that the media “continue to miss what’s right in front of them. What has always been there. I love to work. I love books. I love the sea. I love horses. Children. Art. Ideas. History. Beauty. Because beauty blows us open to wonder, and wonder is what allows us to shift and love and ache and grow and change. Even the beauty that breaks your heart.”

While this is a work of fiction, Tripp provides an exhaustive list of her sources, many of which provide insight into Jackie’s interests, intellect and insight — which Tripp used to inspire scenes in the novel and guide her portrayal of this passionate and complex woman that few have known in depth. Tripp’s thorough and careful scholarship combined her beautiful, sometimes heartbreaking, telling make this the best historical novel I’ve ever read. I couldn’t put it down and it left me breathless. It also left me wanting to explore all of those resources that Tripp consulted, but I’d never have time to read anything else!

I love this portrait of Jackie, for what she endured with grace and fortitude, for her intellect, understanding, and acceptance, for her love of books and beauty. “There’s nothing more important than books,” she tells her son. ““When people are reading, they’re thinking. That’s how change takes place.” I treasure this book. It was a joy to read and reflect on, and I feel privileged to have read it.

Heartfelt thanks to NetGalley and Random House for providing me an advanced reader copy of this wonderful book!

This is the book I didn't know that I wanted to read. I didn't know much about Jackie Kennedy Onassis and I ended up going down the google rabbit hole with this book. This is a fiction but based on true events.

This book was divided into parts and I found them all very interesting. The first part was about how Jackie meet Jack (JFK) and her feelings about him and his lifestyle. This told a story about her ambitions and what happened to put her in the path to make the choices she made. When she first meet Jack, she wasn't at first drawn to him but as she kept coming across him, she was drawn to his intellect and his charming personality. Once he won her over, their "Camelot" life that was pasted over all the media wasn't what we thought it was. I really felt her need to be happy with herself and her life. I felt like she was a lonely person and that kept me reading to see if things ever changed for her. Tripp did a tasteful job of describing how Jackie navigated a life with JFK even through the infidelities and flirtations he had with other women. Tripp made her feel and look strong even if she might have felt less than that.

Then 11/22/63 happened and her life was turned upside down. The author speculates what Jackie would have thought about the events and I really felt like I was reading Jackie's take on the events. Tripp had such a detailed description of events, that I had to google it and get the bird's eye view.

Then Bobby was killed and he was a support person for her and that broke her a little more. Bobby was the one person who helped Jackie after JFK's assassination. He was always there guiding her and helping with the kids. I personally wondered what his wife thought of all this, but Tripp didn't speculate about that.

When Jackie married Onassis, I was a bit surprised as he was over 10 years her senior. He gave her an escape when she needed one but their relationship didn't last. They spent more time apart than together. Then when he passed away, Jackie decided she needed a new purpose in life.

Thus she began her career in book editing in New York. She didn't really have formal schooling for this, but she was a long time book lover, reader, and writer (of Jack's speeches) so she did have some qualifications to start at the bottom.

I was very impressed with Jackie's grit. She got through A LOT of tough circumstances and did it with grace. Her life was about enduring tough things and she never seemed to feel bitter toward JFK. She embraced her life as a Kennedy and was a woman who tried her best. This is a love story about resilience, love, power, loss, and reinvention.

Thank you to NetGalley & Random House for the opportunity to review this ARC.

Such an incredible book! I was hesitant to start this book but am so glad I did once I started reading it I could not put it down! Was so well written and had such amazing detail you really felt like you were there with Jackie living through all the major moments of her life. I can't recommend this book enough it was pretty close to being a 5 star read for me and makes me want to read more from Dawn Tripp. This was an emotional read but so worth it. I want to thank NetGalley and Random House Publishing Group - Random House for the arc in exchange for an honest review.

4.5 stars
STRONG recommend

Wow, this was a fascinating fictionalized, but very well-researched story of Jacqueline Bouvier Kennedy Onassis" life. Yes, I know it was fictionalized, but it gave me much insight into her life with Kennedy and Onassis.

Jackie was very artistic, creative, and cultured as we all knew. But, she was also very intuitive, bright, and read people well. Unfortunately, on many occasions, the Kennedy family did not listen to her advice which could have prevented disaster.

She had three seasons in her life - with Kennedy, with Onassis, and by herself working.

I thoroughly enjoyed this novel. I look forward to any future works by this author as she spent a great deal of time to get this labor of love done correctly.

This is an historical fiction offering of Jackie Kennedy Onassis, with Jackie narrating her story. At just shy of 500 pages, it was quite a long road walking in Jackie's shoes. I've read at least one other quality historical fiction novel about Jackie, but felt like I learned a good deal from this one. I think the author delivered an authentic portrait of Jackie based on all her research. The Jackie I came to know from reading this book was slight in physical stature, but grounded by a steely inner strength. Like many of us, she treasured books. She truly loved her husband Jack, but was well aware of his extra-marital affairs, and drew a red line in the ground that the most important thing was that her children were protected from that potential scandal. She was extremely intelligent, well-read, had good instincts, and Jack consulted with her on many things.

The most riveting parts (like one would expect) were involving the assassination of her husband, John F. Kennedy, as she sat beside him in the open topped limousine, described in minute detail. The book begins with that experience- an obvious device to draw the reader in- then backtracks to the 50s right before she met Jack Kennedy. We're taken through her marriage to JFK, living in the White House, the assassination and funeral, second marriage to Aristotle Onassis, and her pleasant life living in New York City working as a book editor prior to her death from cancer.

One of the tropes I found tiring to read were the italicized passages of poetic meanderings about certain topics involving nature or other heartfelt observations. Jackie was a lover of poetry, so I can understand its inclusion, even though I didn't particular enjoy it. It was one of those books that were lengthy and felt like it, but still worthwhile and enjoyable. I feel as though I would like to pick up and read some other books that I've owned for some time about Jackie Kennedy Onassis- so that's a sure sign that this book inspired my further interest in the subject.

Thank you to the publisher Random House who provided an advance reader copy via NetGalley.

This historical novel is written mostly from the perspective of the only Jackie so famous you can refer to her by just one name - Jacqueline Bouvier Kennedy Onassis. (There are also some interstitial chapters from John F Kennedy’s perspective.) After a prologue immediately after JFK’s assassination, the book rewinds to a young Jackie, her meeting JFK, their marriage, her time as First Lady, the assassination, her mourning, her second marriage to Aristotle Onassis, and her later life working in publishing right up to the end of her life.

It might seem audacious to write in the first person as such a famous woman, but I thought this book did it really well. Although I was not familiar with all the details of Jackie’s life, it felt impeccably researched and really made me feel like I was in Jackie’s head. Super interesting, very well written, and emotional as well. I really enjoyed reading this and am looking forward to discussing with my book club, and will definitely go back and read Dawn Tripp’s novel about Georgia O’Keefe as well.

I will be honest—I am not someone who reads a lot of historical fiction surrounding politicians or famous people, but this one called out to me. I have always thought that Jackie had a much more humbling, difficult life than many people could even conceptualize. Dawn Tripp created a universe where this is indeed the case, but Jackie triumphs and move forward the way many women of her era had to. They shouldered the burdens and responsibilities of the men in their lives and forged their own path. The novel puts Jackie's desires, Jackie's dreams, at the forefront. She is so much more than the sum of her parts that were compartmentalized then commodified—not just from taxpaying Americans, but people focused on her and her life all around the world. Jackie is strong, intelligent, formidable, and brave. The prose was well-crafted, the characters developed well. I only wish that the story didn't lag due to the prose in some parts!

Thank you so much to Random House Publishing Group and NetGalley for providing an ARC!

There have been so many novels written about Jackie Kennedy Onassis in recent years that when I saw there was a new novel, “Jackie,” coming out about her, I wasn’t sure at first whether or not I wanted to read it; however, when I realized the author was Dawn Tripp, I remembered how much I loved her “Georgia O’Keefe” novel and decided I had to read her latest. And I’m so glad that I did.

The chief protagonist of the book is Jackie herself, covering the period between 1951 and her death in 1994, focusing primarily on her years with Jack Kennedy (their first encounters, their courtship, marriage, the White House years, and the assassination), while briefly touching on her unhappy marriage to Aristotle Onassis, culminating in her years working in the publishing industry. This book distinguishes itself from other biographical fiction works about Jackie by bringing to life her nuances, her dreams, and her spirit, using witty dialog and beautiful, haunting prose that makes you want to linger on each delicately crafted sentence and re-read certain passages to savor them.

I highly recommend this book to fans of historical fiction and those who love a well-crafted novel with beautiful prose and finely drawn characters.

Thank you to NetGalley and Random House for providing me an ARC of this book in exchange for my honest review.

I’m not a huge fan of historical fiction so stopped 5% in, but it seems like an easy 3-4 stars with 5 for the right readers. The prose itself has a literary bent. It’s well-constructed and interesting. Conceptually, it feels like a good fresh spin of Jackie’s story. The book doesn’t feel right for our little libraries BUT it does feel like a good book for one of my book clubs, and I look forward to recommending it.

Thank you to NetGalley and Random House Publishing for the ARC.

“Jackie” is a historical fiction book by Dawn Tripp. This book is about Jacqueline Kennedy Onassis. It’s always difficult writing a historical fiction book about a person so many people feel they “know.” I liked that Ms. Tripp tackled telling Jackie’s story in a different way - meaning it seemed a bit more from Jackie’s perspective, yet sprinkled among observations were historical facts. In some ways I liked this book - as Ms. Onassis didn’t write an autobiography it’s interesting to guess her feelings/actions through so many historical events and her life. However, at the same time, this book felt very “dreamy,” for lack of a better adjective. I think that a lot of attention is spent on Jack (for obvious reasons) and Ari, but very little about her life after those “powerful” marriages. Some of this book is not historically accurate - at least per other sources I’ve read - and while that didn’t affect the overall story, some of those inaccurate facts did annoy me a bit. Overall, I’m wavering on my star rating - I think this was an interesting idea and I liked the idea of the book … but I didn’t feel as satisfied as I thought I would be after reading it. 3.5 stars, rounded up to 4.

A novel that reads more like a diary….a diary that you found in an old box of books….one that you’ll have a hard time putting down.

A classic book that has the author's tales of Jackie. I enjoyed the story and learned a bit as I read it. The writing was smooth and the pacing excellent. Thanks to NetGalley for providing me with this title.

Jackie is a well researched beautifully written moving portrayal of Jackie.

We see Jackie through the stages for her life as she meets Jack Kennedy, marries him, becomes First Lady and of a course a Mom.

The book is told in first person Jpoint of view that makes one feel that Jackie is talking directly to you the reader

The book is moving powerful, compassionate that moves your heart and soul.

My review cannot do the book Jackie justice; its a journey I highly recommend .

Dawn Tripp's Jackie will be a Book Club selection for many clubs no doubt.

Thanks to NetGalley and Random House Publishing Group - Random House | Random House for the opportunity and privilege of reading and reviewing this spectacular book.

This was a wonderful read! While I've read other books featuring the iconic Jackie Kennedy Onassis, Dawn Tripp's JACKIE is a fantastic, fascinating addition that truly centers Jackie from start to finish, allowing her to tell her story on her own terms. Not only is the book clearly well-researched (I thought it was especially interesting how Tripp based some scenes in the book off of real-life photos of Jackie!), it's also beautifully written. There was something so poetic about the writing style throughout—it fully immersed me in Jackie's world and painted such a vivid picture of some formative events, relationships, and moments in her life. Jackie's elegance, poise, and strength was undeniable, and Tripp's portrayal of her certainly highlights those traits, while also showing that Jackie was a real, complex, flawed human being, with her own private thoughts, dreams, and feelings beyond how she appeared in the public eye. I did wish that we saw a little bit more of Jackie's life before and after JFK, but understand why there was such a heavy focus on their relationship, and enjoyed reading the few chapters told from his POV as well. Overall, JACKIE is a gorgeously written story that will undoubtedly give any historical fiction fan an even greater appreciation of Jackie Kennedy! Thank you to NetGalley and Random House for the ARC.

Such a fast read for a historical fiction book. I really enjoyed reading things from Jackie's perspective. It was really well written and I could not put it down.

Jackie: she’s charismatic, complex and timeless.

A bookshelf could easily be filled with biographies about her life and yet, now there is one more to add. Even though it’s been years since Jackie was the First Lady, wife of Onassis, and editor for Doubleday, this picks up every bit of her true beauty with articulate, observant thoughts.

The book follows a timeline of Jackie’s life showing many of her emotional ups and downs. It focuses on President Kennedy as he made such a powerful presence in her life. I was shocked how calm she was when seeing him with other women while married. We assumed he loved her as she was his wife. But did he? It was her job to make an impression as the First Lady and she did it well.

Many of us lived through the times and remember the history: when she was the admired wife of President Kennedy with two beautiful children. Then the world stopped with the tragic news on November 22, 1963 that put Dallas on the map. Everyone tuned into their small TV sets watching the news with deep sadness when they learned that the 35th US President was shot. I could feel the pain and agony from this time.

While Jackie didn’t crave attention, she had a mysterious side to her filled with admiration which made people want to follow her before it was fashionable. I jotted down a few lines of wisdom from people she admired in this insightful book. When Onassis died, Jackie decided to follow her heart with the love of books in the world of publishing. I can only guess that authors were thrilled to have her as their editor.

My thanks to Random House and NetGalley for allowing me to read an advance copy of this book with an expected release date of June 18, 2024.

The love story of Jackie and Jack Kennedy from the time they met until after he died. All told from Jackie's perspective.

I was just a toddler of three years old when the tragic assassination of President Kennedy occurred. Although I possess a certain level of knowledge about Robert Kennedy, Jacqueline Bouvier, and later Ari Onassis, I was too young to fully comprehend the significance of those events at the time. However, I recently delved into the captivating book "Jackie" by Dawn Tripp, which truly fascinated me and offered a fresh perspective. Although classified as historical fiction, the thorough research conducted by the author is evident throughout the narrative. The book reads like a personal journal, providing invaluable insights into Jackie's life. As I immersed myself in its pages, I felt as though I had been granted a glimpse into a different world, experiencing everything from idyllic summers at Hyannis Port to the process of selecting a home in Georgetown. By the end of the book, I had developed a deep attachment to Jackie Kennedy Onassis. Without a doubt, "Jackie" deserves a solid four-star rating and should be included on your must-read list!

Thank you to Net Galley and Random House for the ARC to read and review.