The Week the World Stood Still: Inside the Secret Cuban Missile Crisis

by Sheldon Stern and Sheldon M. Stern

Book Overview

The Cuban missile crisis was the most dangerous confrontation of the Cold War and the most perilous moment in American history. In this dramatic narrative written especially for students and general readers, Sheldon M. Stern, longtime historian at the John F. Kennedy Library, enables the reader to follow the often harrowing twists and turns of the crisis.

Based on the author's authoritative transcriptions of the secretly recorded ExComm...

• Format: Paperback
• Language: English
• ISBN: 0804750777
• ISBN13: 9780804750776
• Release Date: January 2005
• Publisher: Stanford University Press
• Length: 256 Pages
• Weight: 0.82 lbs.
• Dimensions: 0.6" x 6.0" x 9.0"

Customer Reviews

1962 OCTOBER & CUBA

How JFK kept sane we will never know , obviously the JCS wanted to send us all into god knows where but you can bet they would have been safe in their hideaway . Seems to me , like Churchill had his mission in life , there at the right time , then so JFK was put in charge for his ability to change the thinking.

A HARD RAIN WAS GOING TO FALL

Sheldon M. Stern's aptly chosen title recalls that wonderful science fiction film of the 1950s, "The Day the Earth Stood Still." It is good to have that echo in mind as you look back upon the Cuban Missile Crisis of October 1962. Mid-century Hollywood reminds us of what the Cold War was like and Mr. Stern's book expresses what nearly happened. Aside from age and place of birth - I wish an aversion to war was a presidential requirement. President John Fitzgerald Kennedy had it. He had been to war and in his heart he did not wish to start another. This is a great book for History Students and we should all be students of our history. While it is a condensation it seems more like an explosive compression of "Averting the Final Failure" (2003), which I have reviewed earlier -- describing it as, "a chilling, provocative page turner." So is this book and there are fewer pages to turn; this would have gratified me in my student days. If you would like more information, thoughts and opinion please turn to my earlier review.

A Must Read for history enthusiasts

Sheldon Stern has presented a harrowing study of one of the most dangerous events in World History - The Cuban Missile Crisis. In his book, The Week the World Stood Still: Inside the Secret Cuban Missile Crisis, we are presented with an event whose story line reads like it was written by a Robert Ludlum-like mystery writer, this story, however, was frighteningly true history. With the careful, thoughtful, and thorough research that is Mr. Stern's trademark, the reader is presented with the complete inside story of that fateful week. This is a must read for, not only students, but adults as well. Kudos!

JFK and the Missile Crisis, a Closeup View

Sheldon Stern takes us right into perhaps the most important decision-making in U.S. history. This account has been scrupulously put together from the primary sources, including the taped deliberations. Kennedy no longer emerges as a simplistic "cold warrior" but as a statesman whose value has even been enhanced by subsequent events. This is about as definitive account as we are likely to get, and is essentially reading for anyone who wants to be informed about those days of crisis. Herbert S. Parmet

A narrative written for students and general readers

The Cuban missile crisis was the most dangerous moment of the Cold War and has received numerous analysis in other titles and articles. What makes Sheldon M. Stern's The Week The World Stood Still: Inside The Secret Cuban Missile Crisis different is its focus on a narrative written for students and general readers. The author's own transcriptions of the secretly recorded ExComm meetings serves as a foundation for an analysis which captures the striking moments of tension behind the scenes. The newest addition to the "Stanford Nuclear Age Series", The Week The World Stood Still is an impressive work of scholarship that is also highly recommended for non-specialist general readers with an interest in the history of the Cold War era.