John F. Kennedy: His Life and Legacy [Hardcover]

Shelley Sommer (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: January 4, 2005 | Age Level: 9 and up

President John F. Kennedy lived an extraordinary life. He was awarded a Purple Heart for bravery in World War II. He won the Pulitzer Prize for his book Profiles In Courage. He was the youngest man ever elected president and the first president born in the twentieth century.His commitment to civil rights and his efforts to limit the use of nuclear weapons changed American life. President John F. Kennedy’s life and, sadly, his early death, are part of history.

A voracious reader of biographies, President Kennedy has fittingly been the subject of many volumes himself. When asked why he enjoyed reading biographies, President Kennedy replied, "Because they answer the question 'What's he like?'"

In attempting to answer that question, author Shelley Sommer presents John F. Kennedy in his many roles -- as a boy, a young man, a war hero, a politician, a husband, a father, and finally a president. This look at John F. Kennedy, illustrated with photos from the Kennedy Family Collection and the Kennedy Library, gives young readers a look at a dynamic man whose personality and politics helped to shape the twentieth century and continue to influence American life today.

Editorial Reviews

From School Library Journal

Grade 4-8–An engaging portrait of our 35th president. In discussing his curious mind, his love of reading, and his sense of humor, Sommer creates an empathetic connection with readers early in the book. She describes her subject's privileged childhood and large Irish family and explains how he used his World War II experiences, especially his role in the PT-109 incident, to connect with a largely poor and middle-class population when he successfully ran for Congress and six years later for the Senate. The author notes that the 1960 presidential campaign was the first in which television played an important role. In addressing his legacy, she notes that Kennedy liked big ideas, and while many were not fulfilled during his term, some, especially the Civil Rights Act, were passed soon after his death. In an easy-to-read style, Sommer does a fine job of painting an interesting and sympathetic picture of a leader who left his mark. The book includes lots of black-and-white photos, a time line, Kennedy's inaugural address, a sampling of quotations, and detailed notes. A solid choice for general reading as well as for reports.–Jane G. Connor, South Carolina State Library, Columbia
Copyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

From Booklist

Gr. 5-8. Sommer, an administrator at Boston's JFK Library, swings wide the gates of Camelot with a flattering portrait of the "intelligent, witty, skillful, fortunate and charismatic" president, laced with telling incidents, homely details, and inspirational quotations. She begins with his birth, ends with an assessment of his lasting legacy, and in between devotes chapters to his youth, education, political rise, presidential campaign, family life in the White House, and major foreign and domestic threats and achievements. She closes with the full text of his inaugural address, several pages of significant quotes, and resource lists for both younger and older readers. Based on personal interviews as well as published sources, and illustrated with small, mostly family photos, this sticks to the shiny side of the Kennedy saga (Caroline Kennedy wrote the preface)--in contrast to Barbara Harrison's franker Twilight Struggle: The Life of John Fitzgerald Kennedy (1992)--so the intended audience will find plenty here to respect, admire, and emulate. For an excellent, more in-depth view of Kennedy's younger years, give readers Ilene Cooper's jack (2003). John Peters
Copyright © American Library Association. All rights reserved

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Product Details

• Reading level: Ages 9 and up
  
• Hardcover: 160 pages
• Publisher: HarperCollins; 1 edition (January 4, 2005)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0060541350
• ISBN-13: 978-0060541354
• Product Dimensions: 9.1 x 7 x 0.9 inches
• Shipping Weight: 12.6 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 4.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (1 customer review)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,722,869 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

9 of 10 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Good introduction to JFK, May 9, 2005

By 

Catherine M. Harding "CMH" (Australia) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: John F. Kennedy: His Life and Legacy (Hardcover)

This is a well-written, child-focused account of the life and times of John F. Kennedy. It is an excellent starting point from which to launch the interest of young ones in recent history generally and the American presidency in particular.

I took a punt and purchased this book for my young son direct from Amazon (sans ANY customer reviews). Over the years he has become increasingly aware of my library of Kennedy books and has voiced some interest in obtaining a suitable biography (preferably less than 300+footnotes pages] from which to decide what all the fuss is about.

Three quarters of the way through reading this book the boy's view is that JFK's "life is like one huge adventure. You never know what's going to happen next."

And isn't that the sheer joy of history - discovering that real life is actually far more mesmorising than any fiction?

Ever since the boy started reading this book I've been peppered with questions ranging from (albeit less succinctly stated than here) how the American electoral process differs from Australia's, the historical effect of the Irish Catholic-Protestant divide in the US and how that played out in public life, to the reasons for World War II and why America (and the rest of us in the Western world) permitted the carving up of Europe in its wake (not at all easy to explain), the basis of the West's fear of communism and whether it was justified (particularly relevant in these post 9/11 days) - and these have been some of the easier queries I've faced so far. No doubt there are many more to come.

This is, of course, a book oriented towards children. It does not go into the gutter - although it certainly doesn't pretend that JFK was perfect (which is why I hadn't bothered giving my son some of the "young adult" biographies printed in the immediate days of JFK's death that were already in the library).

What this book does achieve is to provide what those truly interested in history hope for - an engaging tale of a real man (whom we follow from boyhood, youth to adult), with lots of interesting and relevant information for today's younger ones who so long for real life heroes, warts and all (as distinct from fictional creations) by which to measure themselves and their developing ideals and from whom to learn lessons (good and bad) from real life.