bargainsleuth's review
5.0
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I can’t believe it’s been fifteen years since this book first came out and I bought it and devoured it. At the time, it was the 40th anniversary of Robert F Kennedy’s groundbreaking and ultimately tragic run for the presidency. I decided to revisit the book, because a lot has changed in our society in the past 15 years, yet some things remain the same.
Clarke details RFK’s campaign for the presidency and doesn’t necessarily rehash Kennedy’s whole life. He just hits upon key information without a lot of backstory. I was glad of that, because it seems many Kennedy biographies focus too much on what came before, concentrating on Joe Kennedy and then eventually getting to his children.
I can’t imagine what it was like living in 1968 America. I’ve asked my husband, who was a young teen in those days, and he said he had much hope for Kennedy’s campaign. He knew that if Kennedy could get elected, the war in Vietnam would end, that civil rights would become more important, that poverty in America would be addressed. Instead, the country wound up with a corrupt politician who took his sweet time ending the war, and never addressed the issues Kennedy brought to the forefront of the ’68 campaign.
As good as this book is at looking at those short months when change seemed possible, there’s bitter sadness knowing how it all ended, much like reading books about RFK’s brother, John. Clarke shows how invigorating and groundbreaking Robert Kennedy’s campaign was, completely different than the 1960 election that he ran for his brother, because the country had changed so much in those eight short years. And I couldn’t help reflect upon how different our political landscape has changed in the past 15 years, and yet it also hasn’t changed much since 1968 at the same time.
I can’t believe it’s been fifteen years since this book first came out and I bought it and devoured it. At the time, it was the 40th anniversary of Robert F Kennedy’s groundbreaking and ultimately tragic run for the presidency. I decided to revisit the book, because a lot has changed in our society in the past 15 years, yet some things remain the same.
Clarke details RFK’s campaign for the presidency and doesn’t necessarily rehash Kennedy’s whole life. He just hits upon key information without a lot of backstory. I was glad of that, because it seems many Kennedy biographies focus too much on what came before, concentrating on Joe Kennedy and then eventually getting to his children.
I can’t imagine what it was like living in 1968 America. I’ve asked my husband, who was a young teen in those days, and he said he had much hope for Kennedy’s campaign. He knew that if Kennedy could get elected, the war in Vietnam would end, that civil rights would become more important, that poverty in America would be addressed. Instead, the country wound up with a corrupt politician who took his sweet time ending the war, and never addressed the issues Kennedy brought to the forefront of the ’68 campaign.
As good as this book is at looking at those short months when change seemed possible, there’s bitter sadness knowing how it all ended, much like reading books about RFK’s brother, John. Clarke shows how invigorating and groundbreaking Robert Kennedy’s campaign was, completely different than the 1960 election that he ran for his brother, because the country had changed so much in those eight short years. And I couldn’t help reflect upon how different our political landscape has changed in the past 15 years, and yet it also hasn’t changed much since 1968 at the same time.
rcthomas's review
5.0
This book is clearly the authority on Kennedy's campaign. It clearly details the issues, the events, the speeches, everything that could come into play during a campaign for the presidency. I think what struck me most is, beyond the message that Kennedy tried so hard to bring to the American people, the way in which Kennedy's campaign was really the last campaign of its kind and not just the last campaign Kennedy ever undertook. The changes between his campaign and those we see today are striking to say the least. I also have to applaud this book for the way it handles the final days of Kennedy's life and reviews what could have been. Thurston Clarke's work is a must have for anyoneinterested in the topic of RFK.
mscoutj's review
4.0
A really in-depth look at the 82 days of RFK's1968 Presidential campaign. Full of heartening and beart-breaking anecdotes. All the more heartbreaking because you know how it will all end...
librarianonparade's review
5.0
Bobby Kennedy is one of my personal and political heroes. I think if he had lived and been elected President, as I think he would have, he had the potential to be a truly great President, one who really cared about the poor man, the black man, the Native Americans on the reservation. He believed in reconciliation and redemption, in accepting collective guilt and collective responsibility. I think America would have been a better place for a Bobby Kennedy Presidency, I really do. And it's the ultimate tragedy that he never got that chance - that whilst Jack had three years, Bobby was killed right after the moment of his greatest political triumph, when he won the California primary. This book is a real love-song to Bobby Kennedy, and reading it it's hard not to fall in love with him all over again, as so many did during his incredible campaign. Now if you'll excuse me, I'm going to go away and cry now.
thatbookstoreguy's review against another edition
5.0
Powerful and gut-wrenching, this book made me feel hopeful and hopeless. You know where it’s going, and it barrels at you like a freight train....but, it doesn’t take advantage of the high drama of the assassination. The writer lingers there only briefly, trying to truly concentrate on Kennedy the man, and Kennedy the message.
fallingstar924's review against another edition
4.0
I have always been a fan of the Kennedys, but really started out as a JFK fan. Over the years, I've become more interersted in RFK - most likely after I was able to hear RFK, Jr. speak on the University of Michigan campus while I was taking an environmental law class. This is an account that opened my eyes to RFKs positions and the amazing caring person he was. It was interesting to learn he didn't have friends in the unions, the feud between him and McCarthy, and his campaigning style. I highly recommend this book. Sometimes, I wondered how some of the items would have been remembered by the author and those interviewed had RFK not died.
chewdigestbooks's review against another edition
5.0
I hadn't grasped the power of RFK until reading this and then reading more of his speeches.