The Fourteenth Day: JFK and the Aftermath of the Cuban Missile Crisis: Based on the Secret White House Tapes

by David G. Coleman

“A portrait of the JFK White House after the Cuban Missile Crisis as it really was . . . human and revealing.”—Evan Thomas

Popular history marks October 28, 1962, as the end of the Cuban Missile Crisis. Yet as JFK’s secretly recorded White House tapes reveal, the aftermath of the crisis was a political and diplomatic minefield. The president had to push hard to get Khrushchev to remove Soviet weaponry from Cuba without reigniting the volatile  situation, while also tackling midterm elections and press controversy. With a new preface that highlights recently declassified information, historian David G. Coleman puts readers in the Oval Office during the turning point of Kennedy’s presidency and the watershed of the Cold War.

Genres: History, Nonfiction, Russia, American History

273 pages, Kindle Edition

First published October 8, 2012

Reviews

[Steve · Rating 2 out of 5]

Not bad and informative...but dry, dry, dry! Like reading a text book.

[Brett Van Gaasbeek · Rating 2 out of 5]

This one read like a textbook and used all types of technical and military coding and jargon that was more distracting than it served as educational in the writing. Plus, the chapters devoted to the media and their coverage of the Kennedy Administration were boring and uninspired in the writing. One would really need to be intrigued by this topic to slog their way through it.

[Robert Melnyk · Rating 3 out of 5]

Interesting book about the Cuban Missile Crisis. Much of what was in the book I already knew, but there was a lot about what went on in the weeks and months after the crisis ended that I did not know as much about.

[Edward Sullivan · Rating 3 out of 5]

An informative and insightful look at how the aftermath of the Cuban Missile Crisis impacted Kennedy administration policies and U.S.-Soviet relations.

[Felix Sun · Rating 2 out of 5]

It feels like a book with "bombastic title" to lure readers in, and then leaving the readers unimpressed. The first two chapters were written to summarize about the 13 Days, which has been written to death. If people are not aware of it, they will not pick this book to begin with, therefore the first two chapters were redundant.

The following chapters follows similar style, catchy headlines, but disorganized content, making it unclear about what the central theme of the chapter is. The last two chapters are unbearable and I couldn't be bothered to finished it.

As usual, the narrative is very heavy from the US side as you can see from the words and tone being used. Do not expect any objective writing here.

[Sean O'Hara · Rating 3 out of 5]

Most histories of the Cuban Missile Crisis end with Khrushchev agreeing to withdraw the missiles, then gloss over aftermath. The book looks at the diplomatic wrangling that was necessary to actually ensure the missiles were gone. Unfortunately, this requires so much backfilling that the author might as well have written a history of the Crisis that just spends a little extra time on the denouement.

[Jim Swike · Rating 3 out of 5]

Did not read enough to give a proper review. Enjoy!

[John A · Rating 5 out of 5]

Interesting behind the scenes historical narrative.

Worthwhile read to put the Cuban Missile crisis in perspective.

Makes you think, were America would be, if they hadn't murdered JFK in 1963.

[Don LaFountaine · Rating 3 out of 5]

This was a pretty good book detailing the aftermath of the Cuban Missile Crisis from the Kennedy Administration point of view. Though the book is titles "The Fourteenth Day", it covers the immediate 3+ months after Khrushchev agreed to pull the missiles out of Cuba.

Starting with the October 29th, the author discusses a number of issues that faced the administration and the American people. Detailed in the book are the discussions that were had about verifying that the missiles would be removed. There was not a lot of trust between the United States and the USSR, not to mention that Castro did not want to lose what he saw were "his" new atomic weapons. To that end, he did want want any US planes over Cuban airspace,and threatened to shoot down any planes that flew over. Adding to this was politics. The Republicans who used Cuba as a political attack line held their tongues during the crisis, but were now anxious to attack the administration as being too soft on Communism. Then there was the military leaders who were often at odds with the President about how to proceed with making sure the missiles were removed. Some of the military wanted to plan for an invasion, though Khrushchev was insisting that a no invasion policy towards Cuba be part of the agreement for the missile withdrawal. Interpretation of the terms comes into play as to what is considered "offensive" weapons. All of this played out before the American people through the press, who were very upset at the administration for not providing what it felt was all the information about the crisis and the current events surrounding Cuba. In turn, the Kennedy Administration were not pleased that some reporters had printed classified information in the papers from various leaks inside the government.

The author covers all these topics in this book. He does seem to bounce around a little bit from topic to topic, but it's not to tough to follow. This is a pretty good book, and if given the chance, I would have rated it 3 1/2 stars. I think people who like history, who like drama, and those that are fascinated by politics will enjoy this book.

[Liam · Rating 3 out of 5]

It's not bad but it really falls off towards the last half. In general I was not impressed with its readability or the way its thoughts were organized. It needed stronger editing and structure.

[Socraticgadfly · Rating 3 out of 5]

What happened after the Cuban Missile Crisis was allegedly over?

David Coleman, using recently released Kennedy White House tapes, talks about issues that started with the 14th day after he first informed the US public of Soviet missiles in Cuba. That includes verifying the Soviets were removing stuff, trying to nail down agreement with them on just what constituted "offensive weapons" and more.

Meanwhile, Coleman reminds us (sorry, "Camelot" mythologists) that Kennedy's approval rating, while still well above 50 percent, had dived 15 percent or so from the start of 1962 to the "crisis." So, image burnishing, wanting to keep looking tough yet cool, and more, went into the Kennedy White House trying to manage news, etc.

This is probably a 3.5 star .... not a 3 star. It's not a 4 star, though, mainly because it's too light. That said, for an easy historical read, it's not bad.

[Philip · Rating 3 out of 5]

Most everyone has heard something of the 13 days in October 1962. But the Fourteenth day was the day Kennedy realized he needed to verify that the Soviets were actually removing missiles (and other weapons) from Cuba. This turned out to include very big risks also. Recently released/analyzed Kennedy recordings help fill in the story.
Khrushchev worried about Castro's erratic behavior particularly his orders to "shoot down surveillance planes". The Soviets would defend Cuba but not risk war with the U.S. Kennedy had been worried most about Berlin up until the Cuban crisis, but now Cuba had become the "Berlin" of the U.S. sphere. Kennedy said, "the most important flash point [Berlin] had been neutralized".

[Jennifer · Rating 3 out of 5]

Coleman's argument - that the way in which JFK used the Cuban Missile Crisis to define his presidency was as important as the way in which he dealt with the crisis itself - is a compelling in one. It is a good reminder that in the direct aftermath the interpretation was up for grabs and that the narrative we accept as "the truth" was contested at the time. The treatment of the relationship between the Kennedys and the press was especially interesting to me, as was the willingness of the Administration to sanction what was, at best, questionable surveillance. For a book that is based on the White House tapes I wish there had been a bit more of the contemporary voices than those of the author, but understand that interpretation of raw material is ultimately important.

[Sean Asbury · Rating 2 out of 5]

The cover and description are quite misleading, especially compared to other books that are actually based on the Whitehouse tapes. This books has about 2 total pages of transcript and the rest could have been condensed in to a really good college research paper - not a 200+ page hardback book.

[Gregory]

Very intriguing but could have been condensed. Lost drive to finish toward the middle. Too slowly paced.

[Someguyfromcrowd · Rating 4 out of 5]

A short and effective read. Not too much else to say- I'd definitely recommend it to anyone interested in the time period.

[Jim Cullison · Rating 3 out of 5]

A solidly written, surprisingly informative history of the Kennedy Administration during a pivotal moment in U.S. history. Brief and well-supported, it is a quick read.

[Peter N. · Rating 3 out of 5]

not much really new here

[Kevin Hughlett · Rating 5 out of 5]

Very enlightening. I like the use of the recordings, and declassified Soviet documents. Highly recommend for any Kennedy buffs.

[Kris Walker · Rating 5 out of 5]

Best book on the Crisis I've read in 20 years.