Bonus Content
Excerpt
PROLOGUE
The Torch
2008
It was on the sunny spring day of Tuesday, May 20, 2008, that I emerged from a medicated drowsiness in a Boston hospital bed and looked up into the face of a doctor who explained to me in a somber way that I was about to die, and that I had best begin getting my affairs in order and preparing my friends and family for the end.
As I lay in that hospital bed, my friends and neighbors on Cape Cod were just then getting their boats ready for the summer cruises and races. I intended to be among them, as usual. The Boston Red Sox were a good bet to defend their world championship. There was a presidential primary campaign in progress. My Senate colleagues were pushing forward on our legislative agenda. I had work to do.
No. As much as I respect the medical profession, my demise did not fit into my plans.
I was hardly "in denial" that I faced a grave and shocking threat to my life. The first symptoms of what would prove to be a malignant brain tumor had struck me three days earlier. They'd descended on me as I padded toward the kitchen of the Hyannis Port house that has been the center of my life and happiness for most of my seventy-six years. I was intent on nothing more than taking Sunny and Splash, my much-loved Portuguese water dogs, for their morning walk. My wife, Vicki, and I had just been chatting and having our morning coffee in the sunroom.
Life seemed especially good at that moment. The sixteen years of my marriage to Vicki had been good ones. Her acute understanding and love of me had made her my indispensable partner in my life. We shared countless joyful hours aboard my antique wooden schooner Mya, including nights of sailing along the coast, guided by the stars. Vicki had given me such a sense of stability and tranquility that I had almost begun to think of life in those terms-stable and tranquil. But never boring. Certainly not with this funny, passionate, fiercely loyal, and loving woman.
Vicki and I had enjoyed an especially exhilarating winter and early spring. On January 27, thrilled and inspired by Barack Obama and the hope he embodied, I took the podium at American University in Washington to endorse his quest for the presidency. The best hopes of the past and present converged around me. My niece Caroline Kennedy stood at my back, alongside my own son Patrick and the candidate himself. The crowd roared its approval for my message. And I felt myself lifted-with a renewed optimism for my country, and by the unexpected notes of an old bugle, calling me once again to the campaign trail.
The excerpt above is from TRUE COMPASS by Edward M. Kennedy. Copyright (c) 2009 by Edward M. Kennedy. Reprinted with permission by Twelve, an Imprint Grand Central Publishing, a Division of Hachette Book Group, NY. All rights reserved.
True Compass: A Memoir
He was “The Lion of the Senate.” The patriarch of America’s most heralded family, the late Edward Moore “Ted” Kennedy spent nearly 50 years in the Senate, building a tradition of public service that’s nearly unparalleled in American history. A tireless champion of civil rights, health care, and education, he earned the respect of both Republicans and Democrats, and—like his brothers JFK and RFK—his impact on our nation’s history cannot be denied. In True Compass, Edward Kennedy looked back on his storied life, giving us—for the first time—a high-level look inside the Kennedy compound, from the Camelot years to the 21st century. Kennedy wrote movingly of his brothers and their influence on him, his years of struggle in the wake of their deaths, his marriage to Victoria Reggie Kennedy (the woman who changed his life), and his role in the major events of our time—from the Civil Rights movement to the election of Barack Obama. He also discussed his brain tumor, and how it gave even greater urgency to his long crusade for improved health care for all Americans. Written on the eve of his passing, True Compass is a work of historical import and a source of inspiration for all Americans.
Hardcover: 512 pages
Publisher: Hachette Book Group Usa ( September 14, 2009 )
Item #: 36-3287
ISBN: 9780446539258
Product Dimensions: 5.5 x 8.25 x 1.29 inches
Product Weight: 21.0 ounces
Geat for history buffs
November 19, 2009
I really enjoyed this book. I liked getting an insiders view of the goings on of our government. I really enjoyed the stories about Rose, and the Kennedy familys every day life. I couldn't put it down.
Reviewer: Kim
November 17, 2009
Reviewer: Sharon K
Highly recommend
November 15, 2009
While the facts of the story are fairly well known, Ted Kennedy writes with a passion that is compelling. This book was hard to put down, even for one as familiar with the story of the Kennedys as I am. There are things that a reader will find new, and I was surprised by the depth of his religious beliefs. I highly recommend that anyone interested in the Kennedy family read this book.
Reviewer: Cary F
A Good Read
November 10, 2009
True Compass was a very good bio. Learned lot about Ted that was not in the press. He was a true patriot.
Reviewer: Ronnie
True Compass
November 09, 2009
I loved the fact that the book doesn't dwell on stories that the press overwrote when they happened. The book gets to the heart and driving force of the Kennedy surviving male child. It touches and gives a lot of insight into the real man behind the image of the Kennedy's.
Reviewer: Michelle
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