Cuban Missile Crisis: Sources

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 alternating chapters written by an American and a Soviet general, retraces the moves and countermoves on each side in this terrifying game of nuclear chicken.

Drawing on revealing new research, this richly informative volume is the definitive concise introduction to the crisis that took the world to the brink of nuclear war. * 73 alphabetically organized entries that offer valuable insights into the leaders, events, and ideas that shaped the Cuban Missile Crisis * More than a dozen expert contributors representing all countries involved in the crisis * Seven primary source documents, including President Kennedy's speech to the American public and letters exchanged between Premier Kruschev and Fidel Castro * Biographies of major figures, including the Kennedys, Nikita Khrushchev, Fidel Castro, Adlai Stevenson, and Valerian Zorin * A thorough chronology outlining all key events before, during, and after the crisis

In October 1962, at the height of the Cold War, the United States and the Soviet Union appeared to be sliding inexorably toward a nuclear conflict over the placement of missiles in Cuba. VeteranWashington Postreporter Michael Dobbs has pored over previously untapped American, Soviet, and Cuban sources to produce the most authoritative book yet on the Cuban missile crisis. In his hour-by-hour chronicle of those near-fatal days, Dobbs reveals some startling new incidents that illustrate how close we came to Armageddon.

Thirty-six years after the Cuban Missile Crisis, these declassified documents stand as testament to just how dangerously close the world came to nuclear destruction in 1962, and challenge the official history of the event as a model of crisis management.

For sheer drama, this work of history may never be duplicated. The events of the Cuban Missile Crisis unfold in the actual words of President John F. Kennedy and his top advisers.