The Kennedys Amidst the Gathering Storm: A Thousand Days in London, 1938-1940

This title offers a fascinating look at the Kennedy clan in heady pre-war Britain and the intricate relationships between the US ambassador, Jack Kennedy, Chamberlain, Churchill and Roosevelt. It includes compelling stories of the glitterati of the time, from the Mitfords and the Astors to the Windsors.With the European dictators Mussolini and Hitler becoming increasingly belligerent, Joseph Kennedy's appointment to the Court of St James came at an especially dangerous time. In those pivotal years, the Kennedys crystallised their identity as protagonists on the world stage, making public the competitive clannish intra-family dynamics that would fuel their mythic rise to power.They all learned from their father's successes - and failures. The older children - Joe Jr., Jack and Kathleen - took an active part in England's glittering, 'last fling before the bombs fall' society, but all nine children charmed, their every move chronicled by the British and American media.This important and compulsively [...]readable book presents a new interpretation of the ambassadorship of Joseph Kennedy and explores the intricate, often shifting relationships among Kennedy, Chamberlain, Churchill and, of course, Roosevelt.