Thirteen Days: A Memoir of the Cuban Missile Crisis

by Robert F. Kennedy and Kennedy

Book Overview

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 this unique account, he describes each of the participants during the sometimes hour-to-hour negotiations, with particular attention to the actions and views of his brother, President John F. Kennedy. In a...

• Format: Paperback
• Language: English
• ISBN: 0393318346
• ISBN13: 9780393318340
• Release Date: November 1999
• Publisher: W. W. Norton & Company
• Length: 192 Pages
• Weight: 0.40 lbs.
• Dimensions: 0.5" x 5.5" x 8.2"

Customer Reviews

Important lessons for a new President

This account of the Cuban Missile crisis is written by one of the major actors. Robert Kennedy as Attorney- General was his brother's very close aide, and his description of the crisis provides close observation of his brother's mode of operation. And here he provides crucial lessons for any President. For President Kennedy was during this crisis tremendously open and flexible. He listened to the advice of each and every one. He welcomed suggestions. He made sure that the other side's opinions were fully understood. He also was wise in other ways. He was flexible, but firm. But he too understood the other side had its red- lines, its pride, its limits as to what it could accept. His sensitivity in understanding what the Russian leader might or might not be able to accept was critical. The crisis is of course dramatic. The fate of the world is at stake.The world is on the verge of nuclear war. As described by Robert Kennedy, the President is cautious, responsible, deeply serious. He does not follow the knee- jerk advice of the military people who suggest an immediate military response to the Russian entrance of their missiles into Cuba. He takes the 'blockade strategy' which eventually proves effective. In the critical moment after receiving two notes from the Russian leader, one negative and one positive the President chooses to respond to the positive. The deal is made in which the Russian missiles are removed from Cuba and the U.S. promises not to attack or invade Cuba. The world is saved nuclear conflagration. I have just hinted at the richness of this small and extremely important and valuable work.

It is only because of great and humble men we are here today

While I was not yet born when RFK and JFK were alive, I would have to say they are two of the greatest men in American history. Robert Kennedy brings his readers closer to a situtation that is almost beyond the scope of the human mind. His account of the Cuban Missile Crisis makes us realize how close we have come to the end and absolutely shows us that it is only because of great men we are here. This book reminds us how close we came to the end and the critical role Jack and Bobby played in bringing us back. I only hope that current and future leaders of the world read this account and understand what they understood...we are all mortal and we all love our children. Those are the things that will save us, Jack and Bobby knew that and it is obvious in this extrodrinary book.

Thirteen Days: A Memoir Of The Cuban Missile Crisis

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 this unique account, he describes each of the participants during the sometimes hour - to - hour negotiations, with particular attention to the actions and views of his brother, President John F. Kennedy. In a new foreword for this edition, the distinguished historian and Kennedy adviser Arthur Schlesinger, Jr., discusses the book's enduring importance and the significance of new information about the crisis that has come to light, especially from the Soviet Union.As a principle figure in resolving the crisis Robert Kennedy brings to it extraordinary authority, with his own insights, perspectives and very important revelations of the decision - making process at the highest level, on the brink of nuclear holocaust.

Inside The Cuban Missle Crisis

The Cuban Missile Crisis is the defining moment of John Kennedy's presidency. Locked in a high stakes game of chicken, the world's two most powerful nations, US & USSR, faced off over the Soviet Union's deployment of nuclear warheads in Cuba. Robert Kennedy was the Attorney General at the time and this book (written shortly before his death) is his personal account of the Thirteen Days that the world waited in fear of a possible nuclear holocaust. We see the innerworkings of the committee that the President formed to advise him on how to proceed. Mr. Kennedy's writing vividly expresses the enormous pressure these few gentlemen were under. They literally had the weight of the world on their shoulders and one wrong move could spell total annihilation. Being the President's brother, he also is able to give us a view of the President that a normal cabinet member wouldn't be able to give. The book also contains correspondence between JFK & Kruschev, previously classified photos and transcriptions of speeches that JFK gave at the time. For someone who remembers the Crises, this book will bring back strong memories and for those of us who weren't alive, the book details an important time in our country's history.

A Historical Lesson about Human Nature and our own Mortality

"Thirteen Days", a memoir by Robert Kennedy has become one of the most insightful and behind-the-scenes accounts of one of the most studied military confrontations in history. It was a time in which the world looked nuclear annihilation directly in the eyes over the course of 13 dramatic days in October of 1962. RFK, an intricate player throughout the process, lays out in chilling recollection the Cuban Missile Crisis and how close we actually came to that fateful day when the world's superpowers would square off with nuclear weapons. RFK's first-hand account articulately provides a perspective on what was going on in the minds of the players involved. It allows the reader to understand the enormous weight their decisions carried, as well as all of the pressures that affected each of them.While a generation remembers a stoic President Kennedy giving his on-air address condemning the soviet supply of offensive weapons into Cuba, "13 Days" brings into account all of the human factors that affected these men as they sought to do what they felt was right.This was a time in our nation's history when leadership was most needed. With the encouragement of the President, these individuals sought to learn from the mistakes of the past while also sympathizing with the Soviets who were also thrust into this position. The Soviets would not let a military attack go unwarranted, but at the same time had families of their own and ultimately wanted the same outcome from this standoff; a peaceful conclusion.The decisions that were made by the ExComm would impact the history of the world and all of its inhabitants. It was a trying time that tested the souls of the leaders of the world and proved to be a turning point in world events. As JFK security advisor McGeorge Bundy aptly put it, "Having come so close to the edge, we must make it our business not to pass this way again." President Kennedy did his best to put it all in perspective; "For in the final analysis, our most basic link is that we all inhabit this small planet. We all breathe the same air. We all cherish our children's future. And we are all mortal." "13 Days" lays out the sequence of events that brought us all to this realization. It is a historical account that also touches upon the fragility of human nature and teaches us all a valuable lesson about our own mortality.