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Summary
Summary
In Kennedy's Last Days, Bill O'Reilly masterfully adapts his historical thriller to appeal to a younger audience. Shorter text makes this is a useful, inviting, and accessible audiobook for younger readers interested in American history. Both adults and children are sure to find this volume irresistible on its own, or as a compelling companion to Killing Kennedy.
Author Notes
Bill O'Reilly was born in Manhattan, New York on September 10, 1949. He received a bachelor's degree in history from Marist College, a master's degree in broadcast journalism from Boston University, and a master's degree in public administration from Harvard's Kennedy School of Government.
He started his broadcasting career in Scranton, Pennsylvania before moving on to report and anchor in other places including Dallas, Boston and New York. He worked with CBS and ABC News and was the host of the first version of Inside Edition. He began to work for FOX News in 1996 and is currently the host of The O'Reilly Factor. He has won numerous journalism awards including 3 Emmys. He also writes a weekly column that appears in more than 300 newspapers.
He is the author of numerous non-fiction books including Pinheads and Patriots, Kids Are Americans Too, Killing Lincoln, Lincoln's Last Days, Keep It Pithy, Killing Kennedy, Killing Jesus, The Last Days of Jesus, Bill O'Reilly's Legends and Lies: The Real West, Killing Patton, Hitler's Last Days, Killing Reagan, Old School, and Bill O'Reilly's Legends and Lies: The Civil War.
O'Reilly's books, The Day the President Was Shot: The Secret Service, the FBI, a Would-Be Killer, Attempted Assassination of Ronald Reagan; Killing the Rising Sun: How America Vanquished World War II Japan; and Old School: Life in the Sane Lane made the New York Times Bestseller list.
030 (Bowker Author Biography)
Reviews (4)
School Library Journal Review
Gr 9 Up-President John F. Kennedy's assassination shocked and saddened the entire nation and the world. Political journalist Bill O'Reilly explores the events in both Kennedy and his assassin Lee Harvey Oswald's lives in the years leading up to that fateful day. This juvenile version (2013) of his adult title, Killing Kennedy (2012, both Holt), is told in an alternating time line that follows both men's lives in the years preceding the devastating event in Dallas. By juxtaposing the lives of both men, O'Reilly compares and contrasts their backgrounds and beliefs. While O'Reilly's admiration of Kennedy is apparent, this slight bias is well balanced with many facts that will lead listeners to develop a more well-rounded view of the 35th president. Kennedy's lack of interest in politics while growing up, the injuries he incurred while serving in the military during World War II, and the choices he made during the Cold War and Vietnam War are all detailed in an easy-to-understand manner. Narrator Edward Herrmann does a wonderful job of pacing through the audiobook, presenting the facts as if telling a story. Combined with the relative short length of the book, Herrmann's narration makes this an excellent choice for introducing young learners to Kennedy's assassination.-Jessica Miller, West Springfield Public Library, MA (c) Copyright 2013. Library Journals LLC, a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.
Horn Book Review
O'Reilly contrasts the lives and deaths of JFK and his assassin Oswald in episodic chapters that recreate the 1960s and capture important moments. Photographs and illustrations are ample and well selected, and the narrative is energetic and easy to read. See also James L. Swanson's "The President Has Been Shot (c) Copyright 2014. The Horn Book, Inc., a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.
Kirkus Review
Aiming for a young audience, the popular political pundit pares down his Killing Kennedy (2012) considerably (and leaves out the sexual exploits) while shoveling in sheaves of documentary photographs. O'Reilly writes in staccato bursts of present-tense prose chopped into short chapters and featuring quick shifts in point of view. This effectively cranks up the suspense despite tinges of purple ("The man with fewer than three years to live places his left hand on the Bible") and the foreordained outcome. The book chronicles John F. Kennedy's course from PT-109 through a challenging presidency and positively harps on Lee Harvey Oswald's determined but doomed quest to become a "great man." Though he ends with a personal anecdote that hints at the possibility of a conspiracy, the author's closely detailed account of the assassination itself and its aftermath follows the Warren Commission's version of events. News photos or snapshots on nearly every page provide views of the Kennedy and Oswald families over time, as well as important figures, places and major world events. Aside from a perfunctory list of "Fun Facts About the Early 1960s" that seems misplaced considering the somber topic, the backmatter is both extensive and helpful for further study of Kennedy's career and accomplishments. The melodrama is laid on with a trowel, but it's nevertheless a thoroughly documented, visually rich presentation of the official version. (timeline, quotes, capsule bios, sites, books, films, source notes, index) (Nonfiction. 11-13)]] Copyright Kirkus Reviews, used with permission.
Booklist Review
As he did with his titles about the assassination of Abraham Lincoln, TV pundit O'Reilly has pulled a book for young people from his adult work Killing Kennedy (2012). While this focuses on the assassination, the book does a solid job of introducing John Kennedy and covering the momentous events of his administration: the Bay of Pigs invasion; civil rights clashes and Martin Luther King Jr.'s March on Washington; and the Cuban missile crisis. In a parallel narrative, O'Reilly also tells the story of Lee Harvey Oswald, a loser with delusions of grandeur. The assumption is that Oswald was the lone killer, though an interesting endnote touches upon the mysterious figure who some thought was Oswald's CIA handler (and who O'Reilly was set to interview on the day the man committed suicide). A present-tense narrative brings the events close to the reader, giving this a you-are-there feel. The photos are well chosen and the back matter extensive; the source notes weren't available for review. A highly readable addition to Kennedy shelves.--Cooper, Ilene Copyright 2010 Booklist
Excerpts
Excerpts
Chapter SixFebruary 1961The White House 1:00 p.m. THE PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES is on schedule. Almost every afternoon, at precisely 1:00 p.m., he slips into the heated indoor pool located between the White House and the West Wing. John Kennedy does this to soothe his aching back. The pain is constant and so bad that he often uses crutches or a cane to get around, though rarely in public. He wears a back brace, sleeps on an extra- firm mattress, and receives regular injections of an anesthetic to ease his suffering. Aides know to look for a tightening of his jaw as a sign that the presidentÕs back is acting up. The half hour of breaststroke and the heat of the pool are part of KennedyÕs physical therapy. The White House staff is getting used to the new president and his family. Very little that was unexpected happened in the White House during the eight years the previous president, Dwight Eisenhower, lived there. But now everything has changed. The Kennedys are much less formal than the Eisenhowers. Receiving lines are being abolished, giving formal functions a more casual feel. The first lady is readying the East Room for per for mances by some of AmericaÕs most notable musicians, such as cellist and composer Pablo Casals, opera singer Grace Bumbry, jazz artist Paul Winter, and even full symphony orchestras.Still, the White House is a serious place. The presidentÕs daily schedule revolves around periods of intense work followed by breaks for swimming and family time. He rises each morning around seven and reads the newspapers in bed, including the New York Times, Washington Post, and Wall Street Journal. Kennedy is a speed- reader; he can read and understand 1,200 words per minute. He is done with the newspapers in just 15 minutes, and then moves on to a pile of briefing books, reports prepared by his staff that summarize information about events going on around the world.The president then has his usual breakfast in bed: orange juice, bacon, toast slathered in marmalade, two softboiled eggs, and coffee with cream. He is in the Oval Office at nine oÕclock sharp. He sits back in his chair and listens as his appointments secretary, Kenny OÕDonnell, maps out his schedule. Throughout the morning, as Kennedy takes calls and listens to advisers brief him on what is happening in the rest of the world, he is interrupted by his handpicked staff. In addition to Dave Powers, who is now special assistant to the president, and Kenny OÕDonnell, there are men such as the former Harvard history professor Arthur Schlesinger Jr.; Ted Sorensen, the Nebraska- born special counselor and adviser; and Pierre Salinger, the former child prodigy pianist who serves as press secretary. After swimming, Kennedy eats a quick lunch upstairs in the first familyÕs private rooms, often referred to as Òthe residence.Ó He then naps for exactly 45 minutes. Other great figures in history such as WinstonChurchill napped during the day. For Kennedy, it is a means of rejuvenation.Then itÕs back to the Oval Office, most nights working as late as 8:00 p.m. After business hours, Kennedy often puts two feet up on his desk and casually tosses ideas back and forth with his staff. It is the presidentÕs favorite time of the day.When everyone has cleared out, he makes his way back upstairs to the residence for his evening meal with his family or with friends Jackie invites. Excerpted from Kennedy's Last Days: The Assassination That Defined a Generation by Bill O'Reilly 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.