Read as part of CBR16 Bingo: celestial. Admittedly, this is a stretch but my rationale is that Jerrie Cobb participated in a women’s flying program in which they SHOULD HAVE been the first American women in space but were denied because…well, because they were women. So the celestial tag is a nod to their hard work and dedication, despite the sexism they faced.
I’ve read plenty of books on the Kennedy assassination, fiction and otherwise. This is a different take.
It started out really well. I loved how Mary Haverstick described her developing a relationship with Jerrie Cobb, while at the same time revealing the parallel track of her belief that Cobb was involved in a special CIA project that cultivated assassins for international assignments.
But after the first 50 or so pages, Haverstick wants you to know she did her homework. I mean, really, professor, it’s all there, in thorough detail. Thorough. Detail.
And that’s really what brings the book down more than the flimsy-but-interesting premise. Granted, there’s a bevy of Kennedy assassination buffs so she has to show her research but it just got tedious and I wound up not caring. The chapters of her unlikely relationship with Cobb became shorter and thinner and by the end, I was happy it was done.
Did Jerrie Cobb have something to do with the Kennedy assassination? I don’t know. It’s possible. Here’s what I think: the Babushka Lady (that she purports Cobb to be), the Umbrella Man, the three tramps, etc. are all mostly coincidences. I don’t think there’s enough evidence for a grassy knoll shooter. I think Oswald acted alone.
But while I don’t believe in an outright Cuba-Mob-CIA conspiracy, I do believe there were rogue-ish hard right elements of the CIA who were at least somewhat aware of Oswald’s intent and intentions. While they didn’t cultivate him, per se, they probably didn’t do much to stop him either. That’s what I can take from Haverstick’s book.
Definitely different than most Kennedy assassination books, it’s worth it if you’re into that subject.