BLOOMSBURY TO PUBLISH KENNEDY LETTERS

Written by Nicholas Clee
Thursday, 10 December 2009

A remarkable gap in the enormous body of literature concerning the late John F Kennedy is to be filled with Bloomsbury's publication, in time for the 50th anniversary of the US President's death, of THE LETTERS OF JOHN F KENNEDY. Peter Ginna at Bloomsbury USA bought world rights in the collection through Martin Sandler, who will compile it. The UK editor is Bill Swainson.

The Kennedy letters are held at the John F Kennedy Presidential Library and Museum in Boston. Biographers have had access to them; but the collection is so vast that some of it is yet to be catalogued. Martin Sandler, a prolific author who has worked with the library, approached Bloomsbury with the project through Emily Easton at the company's Walker subsidiary, which had published two of his books for younger readers.

Peter Ginna told BookBrunch that Bloomsbury's edition would include "a very substantial selection" of correspondence (both to and from Kennedy), but that it would not be so bulky as to be inaccessible to general readers. He did not expect further compromising material about Kennedy's wayward personal life to emerge. "What comes through is largely the record that he wanted to leave. That's not to say that the letters aren't very genuine. His temperament and quality of mind come through.

"It's hard not to read the letters and feel admiration for the man who wrote them."

Above story sent to me by the good folks at Allen & Unwin, NZ/Aust representatives for Bloomsbury.

Above pic of JFK, right, with brother Robert at The White House in 1962, AP photo.