My Twelve Years With John F. Kennedy

Dust jacket notes: "The President everybody knows through innumerable articles, pictures, TV appearances, books, is in many ways the President nobody knows. But now new, intimate insights into the life and character of JFK are presented in this book by the person who in many ways knew him best. For twelve years Evelyn Lincoln was President Kennedy's personal secretary. her desk was just outside his office door; she shared the journeys, the campaigning, the years in the Senate, and his all-too-short Presidency. The man Evelyn Lincoln picked in 1952 'to be my boss and to be the President of the United States' was then a thirty-five-year-old bachelor Congressman who often walked with crutches, so thin his suits looked too big for him, so young-looking that another Congressman mistook him for a page. JFK was charming, friendly, informal, kind. He was also hard-working, careless, forgetful, demanding. He wanted everything right, and he wanted it now. He was never easy to work for, but he was always fun. Mrs. Lincoln learned to take Jack Kennedy's dictation, read his handwriting, pack his clothes, and type his speeches. Mrs. Lincoln finally earned his complete respect and confidence, but not without giving almost too much of herself to the job. After a nearly fatal illness, she lived through her own 'profile in courage' while learning to walk again and winning back her job as personal secretary to the Senator. She went with him to the White House, where her office became the gathering place for his intimates and for his children. She attended the beautiful, glittering parties, when Washington was the gayest, youngest, most glamorous place on earth. She accompanied the Kennedys on their triumphal trip to Paris. She was with him in Berlin, Palm Beach, Hyannis Port, and Dallas. It was Evelyn Lincoln's privilege to be an integral part of John F. Kennedy's life for twelve years, epochal years for the United States, unforgettable ones for Mrs. Lincoln...."