Camelot's Court: Inside the Kennedy White House (Hardcover) (ISBN-13: 9780062065841)

Fifty years after John F. Kennedy's assassination, presidential historian Robert Dallek, whom The New York Times calls "Kennedy's leading biographer," delivers a riveting new portrait of this president and his inner circle of advisors--their rivalries, personality clashes, and political battles. In Camelot's Court, Dallek analyzes the brain trust whose contributions to the successes and failures of Kennedy's administration--including the Bay of Pigs, civil rights, the Cuban Missile Crisis, and Vietnam--were indelible.

Kennedy purposefully put together a dynamic team of advisors noted for their brilliance and acumen, including Attorney General Robert Kennedy, Secretary of Defense Robert McNamara, Secretary of State Dean Rusk, National Security Advisor McGeorge Bundy, and trusted aides Ted Sorensen and Arthur Schlesinger. Yet the very traits these men shared also created sharp divisions. Far from being unified, this was an uneasy band of rivals whose ambitions and clashing beliefs ignited fiery internal debates.

Robert Dallek illuminates a president deeply determined to surround himself with the best and the brightest, who often found himself disappointed with their recommendations. The result, Camelot's Court: Inside the Kennedy White House, is a striking portrait of a leader whose wise resistance to pressure and adherence to principle offers a cautionary tale for our own time.

Author: Robert Dallek
ISBN-10: 006206584X
ISBN-13: 9780062065841
Publisher: Harper
Language: English
Published: 10/08/2013
Pages: 512
Format: Hardcover
Weight: 1.65lbs
Size: 9.10h x 6.20w x 1.40d

Review Citation(s):
Library Journal Prepub Alert 05/01/2013 pg. 61
Publishers Weekly 08/05/2013
Kirkus Reviews 09/01/2013
Library Journal 09/15/2013 pg. 86
New York Times Book Review 10/27/2013 pg. 34
Entertainment Weekly 11/08/2013 pg. 69
Choice 05/01/2014
Library Journal 05/01/2013