That Special Grace

by Benjamin C. Bradlee

Genres: History

Hardcover

Published January 1, 1964

About the author

Father of Ben Bradlee Jr.
Benjamin Crowninshield "Ben" Bradlee is vice-president at large of the Washington Post. Born in Boston, Bradlee attended Harvard College. In 1942, he became a communications officer for the Office of Naval Intelligence and fought in thirteen battles during World War II. Bradlee became executive editor of the Washington Post in 1968, a position he held until 1991. During this time, Bradlee oversaw the Post’s award-winning coverage of the Watergate affair and the publication of the Pentagon Papers. In 2013, Bradlee was awarded the Presidential Medal of Freedom. Bradlee and his wife, journalist Sally Quinn, live in Washington, DC.

also publishes under the name Ben Bradlee

Reviews

[James Stone · Rating 5 out of 5]

This review will date me, for sure. I was in 8th Grade at St. James Grammar School, helping to move desks into our brand new building when the news of JFK's assassination was announced over the PA system. I remember this so poignantly because during 5th Grade there had been so much ado about the chance of the 1st Catholic POTUS. Given that the school was located in the very same Archdiocese in which the POTUS to be resided, it was even more special.
I found this book while searching for books on Grace for a research project for which I have been hired. What a pleasant surprise. I had had no idea that the book existed. It was written by Ben Bradlee, then the Washington Bureau Chief for Newsweek Magazine. The text had originally appeared in Newsweek after Jack's death.
Along with this simple, down-to-earth text, the book juxtapositions many black and white photos of Kennedy and those around him. It is a beautiful little book, and brings the reader back to simpler times, if times fraught with the Cold War and Jack's assassination. Some say that JFK's death marked the end of an era in U.S. history. I agree.
What makes the book stand out even more is the context against which I read it; the GOP is conducting the most blatant example of just how ugly politics can be.
So, for historical value and for recollections of a different time in U.S. politics, I give this book my highest recommendation.

[Charles · Rating 2 out of 5]

This simple book of photos of President John Kennedy with supplemental text is the most laudatory book of a president that I have ever seen. All is explained in the blurb about the author on the DJ, “When Senator John F. Kennedy bought a house in the same Georgetown block as the Bradlees’ in 1958, the two families became close personal friends.” Yet, Bradlee was also an esteemed journalist, which tends to put him in a clear and obvious conflict of interest.
This book was written shortly after Kennedy was assassinated, so the reader should cut Bradlee some slack. Yet, the text seems designed to treat him as a beloved, saintly figure, even his abilities to eat and play golf are praised. Although it is short, this book is boring.

[Evelyn · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is a loving tribute to President John F Kennedy extolling the virtues of a man who brought a new generation of leadership to the nation taken so young and so tragically from us before he could fulfill his promise.

Current and future leaders could take lessons from him in the importance of self-depreciation, love, grace and forgiveness in charting a path forward for the United States.