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| Thirteen Days: A Memoir of the Cuban Missile Crisis
Paperback
Author: Robert F. Kennedy
Publisher: W. W. Norton & Company
Release Date: 1999-11
ISBN-10: 0393318346
ISBN-13: 9780393318340
List Price: $13.95
Average Customer Rating:
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The unique, gripping account of the perilous showdown between the United States and the Soviet Union. During the thirteen days in October 1962 when the United States confronted the Soviet Union over its installation of missiles in Cuba, few people shared the behind-the-scenes story as it is told here by the late Senator Robert F. Kennedy. In a clear and simple record, he describes the personalities involved in the crisis, with particular attention to the actions and attitudes of his brother, President John F. Kennedy. He describes the daily, even hourly, exchanges between Russian representatives and American. In firsthand immediacy we see the frightening responsibility of two great nations holding the fate of the world in their hands.
Essential study material for all who aspire to be U. S. president
| Customer Rating: | There are many things that a U. S. president must know and much of that comes from documents about the past. Two of the most important documents are "The Guns of August" by Barbara Tuchman and this book by Robert Kennedy. Tuchman's book is a fascinating account of how what should have been a relatively minor event, the assassination of the heir to the throne of Austria-Hungary in 1914, escalated rapidly into the conflict that we now call World War I. A series of rigidly structured alliances, mass belief in a quick and just war and the fundamental incompetence of leaders synergistically worked together to generate a war of mass destruction.
Fortunately, as Robert Kennedy points out in this book, President John Kennedy had read Tuchman's book before the aerial photos revealed the presence of Soviet nuclear missiles in Cuba. That knowledge served him very well when he received advice that recommended a "limited" nuclear war. Even 44 years later, it is frightening to read that some U. S. military commanders made that recommendation.
Fortunately for the world, President Kennedy was of sounder mind, refusing to take such a dramatic step until all possible alternative options were tried. It is also a fortuitous accident of history that his brother Robert Kennedy was a member of the Cuban Missile Crisis working group. The knowledge that his brother would be completely loyal and was not furthering a personal agenda gave President Kennedy a great deal of moral support at a time of great need. Robert Kennedy is quite modest in this book, understating his role in resolving the crisis.
Hopefully, the Cuban Missile Crisis will always remain the point where the world came the closest that it will ever be to the brink of nuclear war. This book is a brief, yet effective description of that event and the lessons contained within it should never be forgotten.
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We were in the middle of it
| Customer Rating: | As a Cuban refugee I was training for a job in Key West when the Cuban Missile Crisis ocurred. I was twenty years old, my wife nineteen and our baby three months old.
The narrow bridge that connects the mainland to Key West was closed to civilian traffic. Hundreds of missile launchers were transported from bases in Florida to Key West along with tanks, troops, and war material. In a matter of hours all the local stores ran out of stock, just like during a Cat.5 hurricane warning. "Thirteen Days: A Memoir of the Cuban Missile Crisis" is so fascinating and its research so thorough that reading it was like rewinding the tape to the nightmare of those days.
We were terrified about what would happen in the event of a Castro missile attack, and the only time we felt safe was when we listened to the American jet fighters fly overhead 24/7.
I highly recommend this book and like others of the same high caliber, it is stored in our library under the "Memoirs of Exile" section.
Signed: Andrew J. Rodriguez, Author of "Adios, Havana," a memoir |
On the precipice of annihilation
| Customer Rating: | Having just finished reading "The Last Campaign" by Thurston Clarke about RFK's 1968 presidential campaign, I decided to read "Thirteen Days". I bought some other books about the Cuban Missile Crisis, but wanted RFK's memoir and perspective about the situation before reading more current historical accounts.
The first item that is a resonant theme forty years later is the ability of JFK to surround himself with diverse points of view and weigh all approaches to this stand-off before ultimately making his decision. This is in remarkable contrast with the current administration of George W Bush. However, RFK outlines the difficulty of individuals to even be honest with a President and the process that the select innner circle of military and civilian people went through -- no holds barred sessions without the JFK present -- that enabled them to outline the various options for him to consider.
The second item that struck me was the simplicity of this memoir. RFK did not go into exhaustive detail, but gave enough "insider" perspective to (1) make people realize how close we were to the brink of world destruction, (2) outline the calm and collected approach of the JFK in the face of such esacalating tension.
Why only a four? As with any memoir, there are certainly alternative perspectives that clearly don't get represented and covered objectively given the writer's bias and interest. For instance, historical records have shown that Kennedy did agree to remove missiles from Turkey as part of the negotiations with Khruschev -- even though this was delayed in order to ensure that there was no appearance of a quid pro quo. This does not diminish the value and perspective of "Thirteen Days", just reflects my opinion that it doesn't represent the definitive account of the Cuban Missile Crisis, but does provide the clearest inside picture of two weeks that the world came closest to nuclear annihilation during the Cold War. |
Inside look at critical inclusive decision making
| Customer Rating: | Robert Kennedy's memoir gives not only a fascinating insight to this critical episode, but it serves as a paradigm for crisis management. The brevity of this book is a plus, as it can be an entry into both this critical moment in history as well in decision making for those without the time to wade through more detailed accounts. Theodore Sorensen edited this diary of Robert Kennedy's account after his death, but even with subsequent release of much more information, the essentials are all here, and surprisingly little is either left out or fabricated, given Robert Kennedy and Theodore Sorensen's loyalty to the President. One element of history that is misrepresented is how direct Robert was in offering to trade US missile bases in Turkey, for those of the USSR in Cuba. While we have often accused the Russians of being guilty of rewriting history, it is an American tradtition to emphasize certain elements while deftly underemphasizing certain others. Nontheless, this book could be recommended to anyone looking for a thriller which proves that indeed truth is stranger than fiction. I have three wishes: 1. Every high school student should read this book. 2. Every president and his cabinet should read this book prior to taking the oath of office. 3.
George W. Bush should read it at least once a week. |
AS WE APPROACH IN HALF A YEAR THE FORTIETH ANNIVERSARY OF HIS FBI ASSASSINATION LET US RECALL WHEN WISDOM AND DIPLOMACY RULED
| Customer Rating: | Here we have in Robert Kennedy's own account how the world kept out of annihilating nuclear warfare nearly a half century ago, rather than the current highly profitable rushes to war with untold, uncounted millions of innocent victims these past few decades.
Here we can read how true, wise, competent and democratically elected national leaders kept us out of war, Averting 'The Final Failure': John F. Kennedy and the Secret Cuban Missile Crisis Meetings (Stanford Nuclear Age Series).
The only lamentable sectio of this chronicle may be, as ever, Schlesinger's introduction. The rest let us read and pray once more for leaders of peace and morality, not of corrupt as profitable war-mongering.
There are several accounts of those thirteen days, and films. Let us best begin with this book. |
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