Cheap American Son (Book) (Richard Blow) Price

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Customer Reviews of American Son

A Surprisingly Good Book
I basically picked up this book because I was looking for something "non-fiction" to read, and I wanted to learn more about the life of JFK, Jr. I was also a fan (I majored in Political Science in college) of George Magazine, and could never really understand why the magazine didn't catch on with the public better than it did. I was somewhat hesitant to pick up this book because of the bad press that some critics had given it when it first came out. What I found, was a non-sensatinalized account of what it was like to work with JFK, Jr. and to know him as a high level employee. When the author talks about his own personal life, it adds context to the story of Mr. Kennedy, rather than getting in the way, or distorting his role in his life. He does not try to portray himself as a confidente or best friend, but only as an employee, who shared a work bond. This gives the book a great deal of credibility. The author gives a good insight on what Mr. Kennedy was like, and what it must be to live the life of a celebrity and an historical icon. I think those individuals who have criticized this book in professional book reviews were either jealous, or in some misguided way trying to preserve their version of the Kennedy legend. There is no "dirt" dished in this book, but it does give a well rounded picture of the subject from one point of view. If anything, it is less critical of the subject than I would have expected. I would recommend it to anyone wanting to know more about the latter part of Mr. Kennedy's life or an insider's look at some of the politics within George Magazine.

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Inappropriate title perhaps, but a good read..
Those of us who grew up during the Kennedy administration's years might be more prone to purchasing this book than those who didn't. Because of the "Camelot" era, JFK Jr. held a warm spot in our hearts.

I don't believe this book is exactly a 'portrait' of JFK Jr, and I don't think the author really had extensive knowledge of the subject's personal life. However, the book definitely gives us a glimpse of John's drive to make his magazine successful and gives us a glimpse of his workings with his employees and, somewhat, his relationship with his wife. It may be that Blow needed a catharsis to deal with his memories, but whatever his reasons for writing this book, I don't feel he did anything but pay tribute to a man he obviously admired.

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the best JFK Jr. book
I'm sure all the controversy helped sales of this book, but it definitely gave me a misleading impresson of both the book and its author. I didn't read American Son for a while after it came out because I was turned off by the controversy. But eventually I broke down and bought it and I'm glad I did. In retrospect, some of the people who trashed the book didn't even seem like they'd read it, but were just reacting to the hype about it, or had some personal ax to grind. (You can definitely tell that some of the reviews on Amazon were written by people with a hidden agenda.) Anyway, American Son is well-written and easy to read, and feels a lot more honest than most of the Kennedy books out there. You really get a sense of what JFK Jr. was like-funny, warm, likeable, but surpringly vulnerable and unsure about his future. Also, I enjoyed reading about what it was like to work at George magazine. I was a charter subscriber, and I always thought it was an underrated magazine. So the book's not just about JFK Jr., but about the magazine business, politics, and New York in the 1990s. I've read all the books about John Jr., and this is definitely the best.