Speaking Volumes: Remembering Jackie Kennedy on what would have been her 90th birthday

Jacqueline Lee Bouvier Kennedy Onassis (1929-1994) was an American socialite, book editor and the first lady of the United States during the presidency of John F. Kennedy from January 1961 until his assassination in November 1963.

Her life after the White house is an incredible portrait of an incredible lady.

July 28 marks what would have been her 90th birthday.

“Jacqueline Bouvier Kennedy Onassis: A Life” by Donald Spoto draws from her own writings, the archives of the John F. Kennedy Library and those who knew her best.

Revealed is her lonely childhood, her time working as a photojournalist for the Washington Times-Herald, and her meeting a congressman named Kennedy. Then her life as the first lady, life after the death of the president, her marriage to Greek tycoon Onassis, her career as a book editor and her final days.

Though much has been written about her life, no biography has separated the truth from the lies or portrayed the Queen of Camelot in all her complexity.

“Jackie” on DVD is the biographical drama directed by Pablo Larrain, written by Noah Oppenheim and starring Natalie Portman. It tells the story of her life immediately after the 1963 assassination of her husband.

Known for her extraordinary dignity and poise, but reeling with grief, consoling their two children and planning her husband’s funeral, we see the First Lady as she fights to establish her husband’s legacy and the world of “Camelot” that she created and loved so well.

“Jackie, Janet & Lee: the secret lives of Janet Auchincloss and her daughters, Jacqueline Kennedy Onassis and Lee Radziwill” by Randy J. Taraborrelli is a dazzling biography of three of the most glamorous women of the 20th century.

Jacqueline Bouvier and President Kennedy had a legendary marriage, as was her second marriage to Greek shipping magnate Aristotle Onassis. Less known was her love affair with a renowned architect and a British peer. Her sister, Lee, had three marriages: an illegitimate royal, a Polish prince and a Hollywood director.

Based on hundreds of interviews, letters and journals, this is an extraordinary portrait of two famous sisters and their ambitious mother.

And then there’s “Jackie’s Girl: My Life with the Kennedy Family” by Kathy McKeon. In 1964, a 19-year-old Irish girl named Kathy McKeon was hired as the personal assistant to the former first lady.

The next 13 years were spent in her service, playing a crucial role in raising young Caroline and John Jr., and dutifully supporting Jackie and the children during some of the 20th century’s most significant and tumultuous times.

Call your local branch for more information on available titles.

▪ Central Library — 941-748-5555;

▪ Braden River — 941-727-6079;

▪ Island — 941-778-6341;

▪ Palmetto — 941-722-3333;

▪ Rocky Bluff — 941-723-4821;

▪ South Manatee — 941-755-3892.

You also can access the library via the internet at mymanatee.org/library.

Cathy Habora is a staff member at the Braden River Branch Library. Speaking Volumes, written by Manatee County Public Library System staff members, is published each Sunday in the Bradenton Herald.