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Mona Lisa in Camelot: How Jacqueline Kennedy and Da Vinci's Masterpiece Charmed and Captivated a Nation | 
 enlarge | Author: Margaret Leslie Davis
Publisher: Da Capo Press
Category: Book
List Price: $24.95
Buy New: $9.88
You Save: $15.07 (60%)
New (47) Used (12) from $8.95
Avg. Customer Rating:  3 reviews
Sales Rank: 26922
Media: Hardcover
Number Of Items: 1
Pages: 272
Shipping Weight (lbs): 1.3
Dimensions (in): 8.3 x 5.8 x 1.1
ISBN: 0738211036
Dewey Decimal Number: 759.5
EAN: 9780738211039
ASIN: 0738211036
Publication Date: November 3, 2008 (New: Last 30 Days)
Availability: Usually ships in 1-2 business days
Condition: Expedited shipping is not available for this item. Items are mailed via USPS media mail within 2 business days and should arrive 4-14 business days later.
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Product Description
In December 1962, Da Vinci’s Mona Lisa set sail from Paris to New York for what was arguably the riskiest art exhibition ever mounted. The fragile icon traveled like a head of state, with armed guards and military surveillance, in a temperature-controlled vault. Masterminding the entire show was First Lady Jacqueline Kennedy, who tirelessly campaigned to persuade National Gallery Director John Walker, French President Charles de Gaulle, and her own husband to debut the legendary smile here. For 88 charmed days, “Lisa Fever” swept the nation as nearly two million Americans attended exhibits in Washington, D.C. and New York. It was the greatest outpouring of appreciation for a single work of art in American history. And as only Jacqueline Kennedy could do, she infused America’s first museum blockbuster show with a unique sense of pageantry, igniting a national love affair with the arts. Gathering rare archival documents and interviews, acclaimed biographer Margaret Leslie Davis has woven a tantalizing saga, filled with international intrigue and the irresistible charm of Camelot and its queen.
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| Customer Reviews:
Terrific! November 14, 2008
2 out of 2 found this review helpful
What a terrific book about an incident that most people might not remember happening. I sped through the book in 2 sittings - utterly fascinating and a page-turner.
Kudos to the author for bringing this part of "Camelot" to its historical importance.
Engrossing and charming November 9, 2008
4 out of 4 found this review helpful
This was a very engrossing account of how the Mona Lisa made it to the United States for public viewing during Camelot. The details of Jacqueline Kennedy's plan and the implementation of that plan were extremely interesting as I was a child of the sixties (but sadly did not live near D.C. to view the Mona Lisa). I was also fascinated with the First Lady's mutually adoring relationship with the French cultural minister, Andre Malraux, and her relationship with the National Gallery of Art Director, John Walker. The personality elements of these two men were almost as much fun as reading about how the First Lady managed to produce a marvelous tour guide/booklet for the public visitors to the White House. The idea of which, was hatched in 1941 when she visited the White House as a citizen and took that standard tour with her mother and sister. The real heroine of the book, however, was Mona Lisa, who even today, remains a mysterious enchantress.
My New Book Club Favorite October 24, 2008
3 out of 3 found this review helpful
What an enchanting and thoroughly fascinating book! Ms. Davis' richly evocative, cinematic detail transports the reader, as if by time machine, to a moment in America's history when grace and diplomacy were valued above ignorance and bravado. As President Kennedy observed, "The United States will be judged - and its place in history ultimately assessed - not alone by its military or economic power, but by the quality of its civilization." This shimmering little jewel of a book is an inspiring reminder of the best in ours. It will go out to everyone on my holiday gift list!
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