Jackie & Me
In 1951, former debutante Jacqueline Bouvier is hard at work as the Inquiring Camera Girl for a Washington newspaper. Her mission in life is “not to be a housewife,” but when she meets the charismatic congressman Jack Kennedy at a Georgetown party, her resolution begins to falter. Soon the two are flirting over secret phone calls, cocktails, and dinner dates, and as Jackie is drawn deeper into the Kennedy orbit, and as Jack himself grows increasingly elusive and absent, she begins to question what life at his side would mean. For answers, she turns to his best friend and confidant, Lem Billings, a closeted gay man who has made the Kennedy family his own, and who has been instructed by them to seal the deal with Jack’s new girl. But as he gets to know her, a deep and touching friendship emerges, leaving him with painfully divided alliances and a troubling dilemma: Is this the marriage she deserves?
Narrated by an older Lem as he looks back at his own role in a complicated alliance, this is a courtship story full of longing and of suspense, of what-ifs and possible wrong turns. It is a surprising look at Jackie before she was that Jackie. And in best-selling author Louis Bayard’s witty and deeply empathetic telling, Jackie & Me is a page-turning story of friendship, love, sacrifice, and betrayal— and a fresh take on two iconic American figures.
This discussion guide was shared and sponsored in partnership with Algonquin Books.
Book club questions for Jackie & Me by Louis Bayard
Use these discussion questions to guide your next book club meeting.
Although the bulk of Jackie & Me takes place in the early 1950s, the story is told by Lem Billings from the vantage point of 1981. What does this perspective do for our understanding of the book and its characters?
What common ground do Jackie and Lem find during their initial meeting? Does the nature of their relationship change as they become better acquainted? What do they get from each other that they don’t get from anyone else?
Lem uses quantum physics as an analogy for life’s potentialities, suggesting that “embedded in every human life, there are traffic crossings, where . . . we would see the contingencies of our fate coming together and commingling, before charging off in opposed directions.” What do you think of this model? Does it apply to moments in your own life?
Over the course of the book, Jackie moves in what were in that era seemingly opposed directions—toward career and toward matrimony. Where do you think her true heart lies? Would she make the same choices if she lived today?
“You don’t think freedom comes free, do you?” asks Jackie. How does the theme of freedom play out through the story?
In her application for Vogue magazine’s Prix de Paris, Jackie jokingly refers to her career goal as “Overall Art Director of the Twentieth Century.” How close does this come to realizing her actual achievements later as First Lady and style icon?
Games and athletic competitions figure prominently in this story. How do they relate to the book’s larger themes?
The first conversation between John Kennedy’s father, Joseph, and Jackie takes place in a doll room. What does that setting convey about the individual characters? About the dynamic of their relationship?
One way or another, Lem tells us, Jack has been battling death since childhood. What does Lem mean by this? How does that color his behavior toward others? Does it affect your opinion of him?
Mr. Kennedy insists that Jack can only be elected to highest office if he’s married. Jackie, by contrast, concludes that Jack’s appeal to women voters depends on his remaining single. Who’s right? Do the old political rules still apply today?
In a critical moment, Lem lies to Jackie about Jack’s ability to remain faithful. Why? How does his decision reverberate through the story?
What do the wedding negotiations between the Kennedys and the Auchinclosses reveal about the families’ respective places in society? Does anybody “win” or “lose”? How does the outcome reflect changes in mid-20th-century America?
Jackie & Me Book Club Questions PDF
Click here for a printable PDF of the Jackie & Me discussion questions
“Riveting, funny, charming, and haunting. All of Louis Bayard’s incredible gifts as a teller of stories we think we already know are on brilliant display here: a captivating setting, unforgettable characters, and an entirely surprising take on a familiar tale . . . He makes it look so easy! I will happily follow Bayard wherever he leads.”
—Cynthia D’Aprix Sweeney, New York Times bestselling author of The Nest and Good Company
“We all dream of novels as good as this one: Fascinating, funny, gorgeous, heartbreaking.”
—Julia Claiborne Johnson, author of Be Frank with Me and Better Luck Next Time
“A meditation on the definitions, possibilities, and failures of friendship . . . As for Jackie, she’s pure delight . . . [Jackie & Me is] romance with bite: The perfect escapism for today’s anxious times.”
—Kirkus Reviews (starred review)
“[Bayard] brings a poignant empathy, persuasive intimacy, and nuanced imagination to . . . a relatively unexamined chapter in Kennedy lore.”
—Booklist (starred review)
“A startling rendering of Jackie Kennedy’s life written with panache and daring.”
—Laurence Leamer, bestselling author of The Kennedy Women and Capote’s Women