Ask not : the inauguration of John F. Kennedy and the speech that changed America / Thurston Clarke.

By:

Clarke, Thurston

Material type: Text

TextPublication details: London : Penguin Books, 2011.Description: xvi, 272 p. : ill. ; 25 cmISBN:

9780143118978

Subject(s):

DDC classification:

352.23 CLA 22

Fiction notes: Click to open in new window

Holdings
Item type	Current library	Call number	Status	Date due	Barcode
Standard Loan	Moylish Library Main Collection	352.23 CLA (Browse shelf(Opens below))	Available		39002100694133

Enhanced descriptions from Syndetics:

2013 is the 50th Anniversary of JFK's assassination.

A narrative of Kennedy's quest to create a speech that would distill American dreams and empower a new generation, Ask Not is a beautifully detailed account of the inauguration and the weeks preceding it. During a time when America was divided, and its citizens torn by fears of war, John F. Kennedy took office and sought to do more than just reassure the American people. His speech marked the start of a brief, optimistic era. Thurston Clarke's portrait of JFK is balanced, revealing the president at his most dazzlingly charismatic and cunningly pragmatic.

Thurston Clarke's latest book, JFK's Last Hundred Days , is currently available in hardcover.

Includes bibliographical references and index.

Excerpt provided by Syndetics

From Ask Not :We saw, in black and white, a cloudless sky, sharp light, and air so cold it turned Kennedy's breath into white clouds. When he said, "Let the word go forth from this time and place . . . " it appeared that each word he spoke really was going forth into the exhilarating air that everyone in the nation was breathing that day. We saw a Currier and Ives tableau, wintry and patriotic. Wind ruffled the festive bunting and the marble façade of the Capitol gleamed. Sunlight bounced off snowbanks and spectators shielded their eyes. Rows of dignitaries filled the platform. The men wore dark overcoats and top hats, outfits for tycoons and statesmen. No one imagined that Rose Kennedy was fuming over her row-end seat, or that Eleanor Roosevelt had refused her place of honor because she could not bear being close to Kennedy's father, or that there was so much bad blood between the dignitaries on this platform that if grudges had weight, the entire contraption would have crashed to the ground. Eisenhower, Kennedy, Johnson, and Nixon sat in a semicircle of armchairs. The four men's wives-all former and future First Ladies-sat behind them in the first row on either side of the podium. A faint smile remained frozen on Jackie Kennedy's face, as if she was party to some delicious secret. Excerpted from Ask Not: The Inauguration of John F. Kennedy and the Speech That Changed America by Thurston Clarke All rights reserved by the original copyright owners. Excerpts are provided for display purposes only and may not be reproduced, reprinted or distributed without the written permission of the publisher.

Author notes provided by Syndetics

Thurston Clarke is the author of nine widely acclaimed works of fiction and nonfiction, including California Fault , a New York Times notable book; Equat∨ By Blood and Fire; Pearl Harbor Ghosts, the basis for the CBS Pearl Harbor documentary; and the bestselling Lost Hero , which was made into an award-winning NBC miniseries about Raoul Wallenberg. He has written for Vanity Fair, Glamour, Outside, Travel Holiday, Condé Nast Traveler , and numerous other magazines and newspapers. He is the recipient of a Guggenheim Fellowship, the Publication Award for the Geographic Society of Chicago, and a Lowell Thomas Award for travel literature. He lives with his wife and three daughters on Lake Champlain in upstate New York.