4 ratings | 2 reviews | avg rating:5.00

Kai Bird’s Followers (602)

Kai’s Bookshelves

to-read (3)
currently-reading (1)
read (3)

Kai’s Friends (266)

Scott J

4,046 books | 83 friends

Kyle Wilson

109 books | 176 friends

David Taylor

876 books | 318 friends

Lucia

262 books | 88 friends

Reza Shaeri

473 books | 96 friends

Gary

701 books | 343 friends

Sahar

758 books | 376 friends

Ron Seckinger

297 books | 22 friends

More friends…

Kai Bird

Goodreads Author

Born

in Eugene, Oregon, The United States

Website

http://www.kaibird.com/

Twitter

kaibird123

Genre

Nonfiction, Biographies & Memoirs, Politics

Influences

Victor Navasky

Member Since

February 2013

edit data

Kai Bird is an American Pulitzer Prize-winning author and journalist, best known for his biographies of political figures. He has also won the National Book Critics Circle Award for biography, the Duff Cooper Prize, a Woodrow Wilson Center Fellowship, and a Guggenheim Fellowship. He is a Contributing Editor of The Nation magazine.

Bird was born in 1951. His father was a U.S. Foreign Service officer, and he spent his childhood in Jerusalem, Beirut, Dhahran, Cairo and Bombay. He finished high school in 1969 at Kodaikanal International School in Tamil Nadu, South India. He received his BA from Carleton College in 1973 and a M.S. in Journalism from Northwestern University in 1975. Bird now lives in Miami Beach, Florida with his wife, Susan Goldm ...more

Learn more
Ask the Author

To ask Kai Bird questions, please sign up.

Combine Editions
Kai Bird’s books

Average rating: 4.29 · 62,674 ratings · 6,179 reviews · 18 distinct works • Similar authors

	American Prometheus: The Triumph and Tragedy of J. Robert Oppenheimer by Kai Bird (Goodreads Author), Martin J. Sherwin 4.31 avg rating — 56,824 ratings — published 2005 — 2 editions	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
	The Good Spy: The Life and Death of Robert Ames 3.95 avg rating — 3,887 ratings — published 2014 — 20 editions	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
	The Outlier: The Unfinished Presidency of Jimmy Carter 4.34 avg rating — 1,310 ratings — published 2021 — 6 editions	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
	Crossing Mandelbaum Gate: Coming of Age Between the Arabs & Israelis 1956-78 4.12 avg rating — 394 ratings — published 2010 — 26 editions	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
	The Color of Truth: McGeorge Bundy and William Bundy: Brothers in Arms 4.30 avg rating — 103 ratings — published 1998 — 11 editions	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
	The Chairman: John J. McCloy and the Making of the American Establishment 4.22 avg rating — 63 ratings — published 1992 — 6 editions	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
	Hiroshima's Shadow: Writings on the Denial of History & the Smithsonian Controversy by Kai Bird (Goodreads Author) (Editor), Lawrence Lifschultz (Editor) 4.27 avg rating — 45 ratings — published 1996 — 6 editions	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
	Oppenheimer and the Atomic Bomb by Kai Bird (Goodreads Author), Martin J. Sherwin, Eric Singer (Adapter) 4.38 avg rating — 24 ratings — published 2025	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
	Prometeo americano: El triunfo y la tragedia de J. Robert Oppenheimer 4.63 avg rating — 19 ratings	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
	Oppenheimer and the Atomic Bomb: Young Readers Edition of AMERICAN PROMETHEUS: The Triumph and Tragedy of J. Robert Oppenheimer by Kai Bird (Goodreads Author), Kai Bird (Goodreads Author), Eric Singer 4.71 avg rating — 7 ratings	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars

More books by Kai Bird…

3 posts
Kai Bird's Blog

NY Times cover review

The Good Spy is reviewed on the front cover of the Sunday New York Times Book Review. "A rich, nuanced portrait..."
http://www.nytimes.com/2014/07/27/boo...

Like • 0 comments • flag

Published on July 26, 2014 06:41 • Tags: cia-thegood-spy

View all 3 posts »

Kai is Currently Reading

Kai Bird is currently reading

Genesis: Truman, American Jews, and the Origins of the Arab/Israeli Conflict

by John B. Judis

bookshelves: currently-reading

Rate this book

Clear rating

1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars

Apr 08, 2014 10:43AM

Quotes by Kai Bird (?)

“Oppenheimer’s warnings were ignored—and ultimately, he was silenced. Like that rebellious Greek god Prometheus—who stole fire from Zeus and bestowed it upon humankind, Oppenheimer gave us atomic fire. But then, when he tried to control it, when he sought to make us aware of its terrible dangers, the powers-that-be, like Zeus, rose up in anger to punish him.”
― Kai Bird, American Prometheus: THE INSPIRATION FOR 'OPPENHEIMER', WINNER OF 7 OSCARS, INCLUDING BEST PICTURE, BEST DIRECTOR AND BEST ACTOR

22 likes

“The kind of person that I admire most would be one who becomes extraordinarily good at doing a lot of things but still maintains a tear-stained countenance.”
― Kai Bird, American Prometheus: The Triumph and Tragedy of J. Robert Oppenheimer

tags: oppenheimer

20 likes

“Scientists aren’t responsible for the facts that are in nature. . . . If anyone should have a sense of sin, it’s God. He put the facts there.”
― Kai Bird, American Prometheus

14 likes

See all Kai Bird's quotes »

Topics Mentioning This Author

topics	posts	views	last activity
The Seasonal Read...: Spring Challenge 2011 Completed Tasks (DO NOT DELETE ANY POSTS)	2867	1115	May 31, 2011 09:01PM
The Book Challenge: Connie M's Book Challenge of 2011	56	40	Jan 02, 2012 08:57AM
The History Book ...: ARCHIVE ONE: PLEASE INTRODUCE YOURSELF ~	6553	4397	May 08, 2013 03:33PM
The History Book ...: SECOND WORLD WAR - THE LIBERATION TRILOGY - GLOSSARY - PART ONE ~ (SPOILER THREAD)	153	269	Jun 03, 2013 07:00PM
The History Book ...: BENTLEY'S 50 BOOKS IN 2013	18	147	Aug 04, 2013 10:43AM
The History Book ...: 11. ROOSEVELT'S CENTURIONS - CHAPTER TWELVE and THIRTEEN, (p. 241 - 265) ~ AUGUST 12TH - AUGUST 18TH; No Spoilers, Please	51	33	Aug 18, 2013 02:36PM