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Touched by the Sun: My Friendship with Jackie Hardcover – October 22, 2019
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The instant New York Times bestseller | Named one of the ten best books of 2019 by People magazine
A chance encounter at a summer party on Martha’s Vineyard blossomed into an improbable but enduring friendship.
Carly Simon and Jacqueline Kennedy Onassis made an unlikely pair―Carly, a free and artistic spirit still reeling from her recent divorce, searching for meaning, new love, and an anchor; and Jackie, one of the most celebrated, meticulous, unknowable women in American history.
Nonetheless, over the next decade their lives merged in inextricable and complex ways, and they forged a connection deeper than either could ever have foreseen. The time they spent together―lingering lunches and creative collaborations, nights out on the town and movie dates―brought a welcome lightness and comfort to their days, but their conversations often veered into more profound territory as they helped each other navigate the shifting waters of life lived, publicly, in the wake of great love and great loss.
An intimate, vulnerable, and insightful portrait of the bond that grew between two iconic and starkly different American women, Carly Simon’s Touched by the Sun is a chronicle, in loving detail, of the late friendship she and Jackie shared. It is a meditation on the ways someone can unexpectedly enter our lives and change its course, as well as a celebration of kinship in all its many forms.
"In Touched by the Sun, Simon reveals an easy-going, playful side of [Jackie] that most people never saw ― sneaking a smoke during intermission at the opera, frolicking in the ocean off the Vineyard . . . The woman who would later edit several of Simon’s children’s books was 'just fun to be around.'" ―Juliet Pennington, The Boston Globe
- Print length256 pages
- LanguageEnglish
- PublisherFarrar, Straus and Giroux
- Publication dateOctober 22, 2019
- Dimensions5.75 x 0.9 x 8.5 inches
- ISBN-100374277729
- ISBN-13978-0374277727
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"Simon's book is full of . . . glimpses of the late Mrs. Onassis you wouldn't get anywhere else." ―Will Pavia, The Times (London)
"A chronicle of a close friendship that might seem unlikely on the surface . . . A behind-the-scenes glimpse at parties where the famous mingle with the famous." ―Kirkus
About the Author
Product details
- Publisher : Farrar, Straus and Giroux; First Edition (October 22, 2019)
- Language : English
- Hardcover : 256 pages
- ISBN-10 : 0374277729
- ISBN-13 : 978-0374277727
- Item Weight : 12.8 ounces
- Dimensions : 5.75 x 0.9 x 8.5 inches
- Best Sellers Rank: #163,117 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
- #495 in Rock Band Biographies
- #655 in Rich & Famous Biographies
- #2,076 in Women's Biographies
- Customer Reviews:
About the author

Carly Elisabeth Simon (born June 25, 1945) is an American singer-songwriter, musician and children's author. She first rose to fame in the 1970s with a string of hit records; her 13 Top 40 U.S. hits include "Anticipation" (No. 13), "You Belong To Me" (No. 6), "Coming Around Again" (No. 18), and her four Gold certified singles "Jesse" (No. 11), "Mockingbird" (No. 5), a duet with James Taylor, "You're So Vain" (No. 1), and "Nobody Does It Better" (No. 2) from the 1977 James Bond film, The Spy Who Loved Me.
After a brief stint with her sister Lucy Simon as duo group the Simon Sisters, she found great success as a solo artist with her 1971 self-titled debut album Carly Simon, which won her the Grammy Award for Best New Artist, and spawned her first Top 10 single "That's the Way I've Always Heard It Should Be". Simon achieved international fame with her third album No Secrets which sat firmly at No. 1 on the Billboard 200 for 5 weeks, and spawned the worldwide hit "You're So Vain", for which she received three Grammy nominations, including Record of the Year and Song of the Year. Over the course of her career, Simon has amassed 24 Billboard Hot 100 charting singles, 28 Billboard Adult Contemporary charting singles, and has won two Grammy Awards. AllMusic called Simon, "One of the quintessential singer/songwriters of the '70s". Simon has a contralto vocal range.
For her 1988 hit "Let the River Run", from the film Working Girl, Simon became the first artist in history to win a Grammy Award, an Academy Award, and a Golden Globe Award for a song composed and written, as well as performed, entirely by a single artist. She was inducted into the Songwriters Hall of Fame in 1994, inducted into the Grammy Hall of Fame for "You're So Vain" in 2004, and awarded the ASCAP Founders Award in 2012. In 1995 and 1998, respectively, Simon received the Boston Music Awards Lifetime Achievement and a Berklee College of Music Honorary Doctor of Music Degree.
Simon is the former wife of another notable singer-songwriter, James Taylor. Simon and Taylor have two children together, Sarah "Sally" Maria Taylor and Benjamin "Ben" Simon Taylor, who are also musicians.
Bio from Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia. Photo by Elektra/Pam Frank (Original owned by uploader) [Public domain], via Wikimedia Commons.
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Learn more how customers reviews work on AmazonCustomers say
Customers find the emotional impact of the book heart-opening, moving, and fun. They also describe the picture as beautiful and the storyline as great. However, opinions are mixed on the writing quality, style, and content depth. Some find the writing exquisite, talented, and engrossing, while others say it's trite and disjointed.
AI-generated from the text of customer reviews
Customers find the relationships in the book very special, endearing, and kind. They also say the book is an emotional, loving, and respectful tribute to Jackie Kennedy.
"...But Carly has an expansive, kind, and generous soul...." Read more
"...The friendship is special and the book is touching...So great to observe from a distance the relationship between these two famous women...." Read more
"...It is a great love story and a time capsule for those of us that were around in the 1980's and early 90's...." Read more
"...Her writing style is rich, interesting, and beautiful. what a beautiful friendship these two women had, and Carly‘s recounting of their years..." Read more
Customers find the picture amazing, beautiful, and memorable. They also appreciate the gorgeous writing and the wonderfully portrayed years together.
"I like Carly's style of writing. Sometime obtuse but beautiful also. It was nice to see another side of Jackie also." Read more
"Amazing....well written. Beautiful...endearing..memorable. loved every minute of this book...." Read more
"...Without hesitation she said: Clouds in my coffee. Great art is timeless." Read more
"...this book for the honesty- a Carly Simon trademark, and for the gorgeous writing another Carly trademark. Don't miss this beautifully written book!" Read more
Customers find the book heart-opening, beautifully written, and moving. They also say it's about dignity, abundance, grace, and joy.
"...was a treasure because I do admire Carly Simon, and enjoyed her thoughts and feelings. Therefore, I kept reading until the very last page. 3.5 stars." Read more
"...various scenes in the book,were captivating, sometimes funny and often poignant, I loved this book for the honesty- a Carly Simon trademark, and..." Read more
"...of Jackie, family and friends, that I found myself teary-eyed and very moved...." Read more
"...She was a very caring friend to Carly Simon & Mike Nicholas. Quite moving. Always loved Carly's music." Read more
Customers find the storyline great, memorable, and beautiful. They also say the author is a great writer of life stories.
"Amazing....well written. Beautiful...endearing..memorable. loved every minute of this book...." Read more
"...Touched by the Sun, likewise, presents a fascinating and moving story of this deep l friendship between 2 iconic women, described through the..." Read more
"...I loved the stories and the insight into one of the iconic figures our time - Jacqueline Kennedy Onassis through Carly’s detail of their friendship." Read more
"It was a really great story. In my opinion, there were too many descriptive remarks that caused me to get lost that were a bit much...." Read more
Customers find the emotional content touching, intimate, and insightful.
"...An intimate, vulnerable, and insightful portrait of the bond that grew between two iconic and starkly different American women, Carly Simon’s..." Read more
"...book gives us an even bigger look inside Carly’s life...so honest and touching." Read more
"...Carly’s writing is so smart, incisive, witty, personal, relatable, touching, and fun as in sharp, ironic, engrossing, perceptive...." Read more
"Very entertaining, Love the sharing of their relationship... so touching....." Read more
Customers are mixed about the writing quality. Some find the writing exquisite, descriptive, and creative, with literary references. They also describe the book as an easy, quick read, and appreciate Carly Simon as a truly unique individual. However, others say the book is trite in some parts and not as well written as they had hoped.
"I like Carly's style of writing. Sometime obtuse but beautiful also. It was nice to see another side of Jackie also." Read more
"...still has a very off-the-cuff rambling style of writing that's hard to understand...." Read more
"Amazing....well written. Beautiful...endearing..memorable. loved every minute of this book...." Read more
"...It is a love letter written to a friend by an amazing artist and poet...." Read more
Customers are mixed about the content depth. Some find the book honest, relatable, and enlightening. They also say the subject matter was handled very professionally. However, others say the book contains boring details and descriptive remarks that cause them to get lost. They feel the book leaves them with a hazy understanding of someone so close to Simon.
"...It is not a tell-all about either woman, though Carly’s disarming candor, and the fearlessness with which she shares how the world looks through her..." Read more
"...boring and I couldn't get myself interested in it as it had so few excerpts with Jackie. Poor writing and very very boring.!!!!!" Read more
"I bought this because I liked Boys in the Trees- Carly is a good hang, candid to a to a fault - she'll tell you if somebody smells--real, funny...." Read more
"It was a really great story. In my opinion, there were too many descriptive remarks that caused me to get lost that were a bit much...." Read more
Customers are mixed about the writing style. Some find the book well-written by a talented, insightful artist. They also say the life of Carly Simon is interesting and engrossing. However, others feel the book mentions celebrities too much and is disjointed, childish, strange, and disappointing.
"...They are so interesting. But this book by Carly Simon was so boring that I skipped page to get to the Jackie Kennedy part...." Read more
"...Carly is such a great talent. I recently watched Vogues 50 questions with Taylor Swift...." Read more
"...But it is only nominally about Jackie; it is about Carly...." Read more
"...She’s such a lovely person, so full of grace. It’s clear why Jackie was attracted to her as a friend. They came from the same milieus...." Read more
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Thoroughly enjoyable and insightful look at women we thought we understood.
..memorable. loved every minute of this book. Im so glad Jackie was in Carly"s life and the richment she brought.
Carly uses her lyrical way with words to write this love song, of sorts, to friendship. To a relationship that was composed of shared secrets and easy familiarity as much as it was with unanswered questions and sometimes awkward moments.
I give huge credit to Carly for this honest telling of their story. A lesser human in Carly’s situation might easily have been tempted to embellish, to portray the friendship as more flawlessly intimate than it was. A lesser human would almost certainly be at least tempted to let a little of Jackie’s stardust sprinkle on them.
But Carly has an expansive, kind, and generous soul. I can’t claim to know all of her reasons for writing this book, but there is one thing that is almost palpable as you read: Carly is a person who uses her words the same way she uses her musical talents: to make connections with other souls. She expresses feelings of doubt, tells stories on herself that might not be completely flattering. She is sharing her humanity, and hoping you’ll recognize that same feeling that you, the reader, have within yourself. She is extending a hand and hoping you will take it, and join her as she tells her story.
If you’re looking for a tell-all book about Jackie, this isn’t your book. If you’re looking for a book that reflects on the nature of friendship as it existed between two remarkable women, then grab yourself a cup of hot tea, find your fuzzy slippers, light a fire in the fireplace, and settle in for a conversation with Carly. What a gift she has given all of us in this delicious book!














