Day John Died

"It's hard for me to talk about a legacy or a mystique. It's my family -- my mother, my sister, my father. We're a family like any other." Where were You the day John died? Like his father's assassination and the death of Princess Diana, the tragic death of JFK Jr. on July 16, 1999, is one of those defining moments -- an event that moved us so deeply, we will never forget where we were when we heard the news. A full year after the plane crash that took the lives of John, his wife, Carolyn, and Carolyn's sister Lauren, millions remain in shock. With good reason. No other American had lived his entire life in the spotlight -- from his rambunctious toddlerhood in the Kennedy White House and heartbreaking salute to his father's coffin to his daredevil Sexiest Man Alive bachelor days and his final years as a devoted husband and respected magazine publisher poised on the brink of fatherhood and a brilliant political career. Now, in the manner of his headline-making #1 New York Times bestseller The Day Diana Died and his two bestselling books about John's parents, Jack and Jackie and Jackie After Jack, Christopher Andersen draws on important sources -- many talking here for the first time -- to re-create in vivid and startling detail the events leading up to that fateful night off the coast of Martha's Vineyard. Among the revelations: How false weather reports from the FAA led to the crash that killed John, Carolyn, and Lauren. Never-before-known details about John's complex relationship with his mother, his intense bond with his sister, Caroline, and his dealings with his star-crossed Kennedy cousins. The state of his stormy marriage to the glamorous and headstrong Carolyn Bessette and where it was headed. The other harrowing moments when John nearly lost his life. The truth about John's wild younger years, including his affairs with Madonna and Daryl Hannah. How JFK Jr. came to view his father and his family's political legacy -- and his feelings about a political career of his own. An inspiring, sympathetic, and compelling look at one of the most remarkable young men of our time, The Day John Died is more than just the definitive biography of JFK Jr. It is a bittersweet saga of triumph, love, loss, fate -- and promise unfulfilled. It is the story of America's son.Andersen, Christopher is the author of 'Day John Died' with ISBN 9780380819584 and ISBN 0380819589.