Texas Triggers: A Western Novel Book

Australian born American film actress and inventor Hedy Lamarr said:

“All creative people want to do the unexpected.”

As we read Caroline Preston’s “Jackie by Josie” we quickly come to realize that her central character, twenty-eight year old Josie Trask is indeed creative. Whether that’s her penchant for “stripping away the twentieth century” by walking down a street and visualizing it as it was over one hundred years ago, or her American Civilization dissertation subject of choice, an obscure poetess named Ada Silsbee, the “Songbird of Crowley” and a poet in the Whittier tradition.

But the Josie Trask we’re introduced to seems to have slammed the brakes on creativity, or even anything remotely close to the unexpected. Living in Providence, Rhode Island, her biggest adventure these days is her secret smoking habit (True Menthols) which she puffs on only when parked in public parkades. She’d met her husband Peter, a California native six years before and they’ve since married and welcomed a son into their lives, Henry, who is three years old. But now Josie’s dissertation is becoming difficult to see, buried under piles of bills, baby clothes and discarded magazines. She feels her old life of creativity and academic challenge slipping away and knows she has to make a change and that this change needs to come soon.

In contrast to Josie’s doldrums, Peter’s life is moving ahead swimmingly, he’s a popular instructor at the university and every Thursday he finds time for his weekly tennis match with Monica Glass, a fellow American Civilization PhD candidate who’s become friends with Peter and Josie, but increasingly so with Peter. Josie is vaguely dissatisfied and restless with her current state of life, but looks forward to the summer months and the prospect of reigniting her passion for her dissertation. They are to move to Berkley where Peter has secured a summer teaching position. Peter’s mother, Ruth lives nearby and can care for Henry while Josie takes another run at her thesis. Josie knows that she’ll chafe under the judgmental eye of her mother-in-law, but the opportunity to finish her essay far outweighs this one annoyance.

But deep down inside, Josie has to admit that the prospect of Ada Silsbee as her muse is losing its luster. Perhaps the source of Josie’s indifference is the past difficulties she’s had finding any research material on the long dead poetess, or maybe it’s that she’s not feeling the same sense of personal connection that she felt earlier when she first dreamed up the project. Be that as it may, Josie is determined to tackle the thesis in the upcoming summer months whether she feels enthused about it or not.

It’s right about then that the unexpected happens.

Out of the blue she receives a call from the popular novelist Fiona Jones who’s writing a book on the recently deceased American Icon Jacqueline Kennedy Onassis. Jones is looking for a research assistant and Josie was recommended by one of her former professors, Rollins, an academic turned “Rock Star author” after the wildly popular reception for his deconstructionist treatise on Rock and Roll published a few years before. Fiona’s publisher has foisted a tight timeline on her in an effort to release the book quickly and capitalize on the “Jackie mania” that followed the great ladies’ untimely passing.

Fiona is looking for an archive focused researcher, promising Josie that she will not have to do any interviews as part of her assignment. Josie is to research the former Fist Ladies’ diaries, love letters and other correspondence and if Josie can help Fiona get the manuscript ready by the end of the summer, she’ll pay her $10,000. Josie mentally tabulates the bills the $10k would cover, including the move to Berkley and how much more exciting a Jacqueline Kennedy Onassis assignment would be over one about Ada Silsbee. She talks to Peter about it and he’s surprisingly supportive (Josie suspects he’ll agree to almost anything to see his wife find her old self again). Josie suggests that she and Henry could stay back in Providence for the summer, staying with Josie’s long divorced mother Eleanor. Josie’s mom lives alone in a “tumbledown federal mansion” that was Eleanor’s part of the settlement when her ex-husband, a “Camelot era” congressman left her for a younger woman when Josie was only eight years old. Peter agrees to the plan, telling Josie it might be good for her to take on a fresh project and maybe even give her “a break” from him and what he’s come to realize is his incessant quibbling about Josie’s apparent lack of progress with respect to her thesis.

So Josie moves in with her mother, only to find out that she’s since welcomed an ex-convict by the name of Fred to live with her. Fred is, by all accounts a gentle, considerate man who demonstrates a penchant for cooking delicious meals for Eleanor, Josie and Henry. Josie is annoyed by the way her mother acts like a “lovesick” teenage girl around Fred and she’s suspicious of Fred and his motives when it comes to her mother. Eleanor also recommends a babysitter for Henry named Allison who is generally doing a good job of caring for Henry and is slowly earning Josie’s trust until such time as she calls in sick and that same day Josie sees the girl flirting with boys at the carnival. Josie finds herself suspecting both Fred and Allison, deciding what can be done to confirm her suspicions about both.

Meanwhile, Josie begins her research at the John F. Kennedy Presidential Library in Columbia Point Boston under the auspices of a “serious academic” who is doing research on the effects of the press on women in politics in the 1960’s. The atmosphere Preston creates, the nature of her research, the parallels between the life of the famed Jackie and Josie’s life and the friendship she strikes up as she does her research are my favorite parts of the book. She befriends a scholarly older gentleman named Roger who quickly establishes a habit of bringing an extra sandwich for Josie each day.

Josie’s “Jackie” research seems to catalyze involuntary reflections on different aspects her own life ranging from her frustrations with Peter’s flirtations with Monica (and some of his students) when researching Jackie’s frustration with her husband’s infidelities to her estranged relationship with her father Griff when researching about Jackie’s with her father John Vernou “Black Jack” Bouvier. Josie takes her lunch, reflecting on her life and finds herself regularly discussing these things with Roger, a considerate man who is also a good listener.

I’ve always liked libraries, the peaceful, comforting environment and the endless supply of stories of adventure and discovery, so in this way I found the setting of this story appealing. Also, I’ve always wanted to actually go to the JFK Library, to see the handsome exhibits, hear the stories and see Victura, the President’s sailboat up close. I also found the kindness and consideration of the character Roger to be authentic. He’s a patient man who appreciates learning, understanding and wisdom and if one is going to meet such a person, they can be found at libraries and museums in greater frequency than many other places. I also liked reading how Josie gains respect and appreciation for the former First Lady, but not due to her grand achievements, but more the way she lived as an individual citizen and as a woman.

These were among the best parts of this story.

“Jackie by Josie” was a joy to read, I recommend it.