The Best and the Brightest (Abridged) Audiobook

" painfully slow, but I finished. I was never excited to read this book, something just wasn't that good about it. "

" Too bad our current administration didn't properly learn the lessons from this war, it might have helped not mess up another country. "

" WHen I read this book, I learned a huge amount about how individuals, their strengths and weaknesses, can play into a larger system of dysfunction. It's a great portrayal of that. "

" Good, interesting look at American history and the JFK era and the administrations around that time. I'm not a big history buff, so if I found it good enough to finish, then it has some redeeming qualities. "

" Greatest book ever written about the reasons why we were in Vietnam, but a guy who was in-country when it all began. "

" Clear prose combined with Halberstam's insight and compelling story telling. If you want to know how and why the Vietnam debacle came to be, this book is excellent. "

" Phenomenal telling of the inner workings of the administration responsible for our deepening involvement in Vietnam. "

" essential, to learn and really understand our government and its ways of working. a tough book to get through for me. it really confirmed my belief that we still live in an extremely patriarchal society. "

" I usually like Halberstam, but I thought he was a bit too snitty in this book about the geniuses who got us into various messes like Vietnam. His book on the Korean War was more compelling. "

" Kind of slow in some parts and there are a ton of figures and a ton of titles to remember (was Rusk Secretary of State or of Defense, j/k), but that's to be expected from a non-fiction account of any white house staff. Really informative overall. "

" Masterful character study of Kennedy's Best and Brightest intellectual cabinet members who led us into Vietnam and refused to admit its failure until it was too late. "

" I can't remember a single word from this book, but it was pretty funny when ZB demanded I get a mattress because she was tired of "waking up on the floor with only this dirty sheet and Tom Brokaw books to comfort me". That's how I roll, babe! "

" A narrative quagmire, not helped by the 'dog-chasing-its-own-tail' character introductions. Still, provides key insights into how the cream of our political leadership and talent can go awry, no matter how much hope is involved. "

" One of the top 10 books you must read to understand the American experience in Vietnam. "

" Best portrait of the highly-regarded but limited men who ran the Kennedy and Johnson administrations and how they led us into the catastrophe that was the Vietnam War. I recommend it to everybody "

" Like I need to add anything to this acclaimed work..amazing history and profiles and painfully relevant. Hubris, Pre-Iraq. "

" OK, I've had this one going for a while. It's definitely good - he won the pulitzer for this book - but it's long and the print is really small. I may never finish. "

" Want to know just what happened and how/why. Read this book and get an insiders look into D.C. politics and all the players involved in the Vietnam war. "

" Big narrative and big characters. Halberstam's macho/epic style can hurt him, but this book - about the stupid ways people can get thier country into war - is still relevant today. "

" Explains the political mistakes that led to the Vietnam war. "

" Ok, I finally got around to read this history of how we got into the Vietnam quagmire (I know that I am many wars behind, alas). The good news is that this book has not aged and remains as interesting, vibrant and to the point as ever. "

" Too much detail. I suppose if I grew up in this era I would find all the characters more interesting. I enjoyed it, but did a fair amount of skimming. It is amusing to read about how frightened our leaders were of a communist takeover. "

" Worth remembering what happened especially these days. "

" The other face of Vietnam. How wars are created by the best and the brightest and how power and sucess occurs in USA. A real and excellent portrait of an era of American history which repeats itself. "

" I usually like Halberstam, but I thought he was a bit too snitty in this book about the geniuses who got us into various messes like Vietnam. His book on the Korean War was more compelling. "

" Densely detailed journalist history of how the US got involved in the tar baby of Vietnam, how it affected the Kennedy administration, and how it helped destroy Lyndon Johnson's Great Society and lead to the worst inflation since the Civil War.Recommended. "

" One of the best books ever written on Kennedy & Johnson years of the Vietman War. "

" one of best books written about the lead up and execution of the Viet Nam war "

" Closer to 4 than 3 the definitive Vietnam story "

" Want to know just what happened and how/why. Read this book and get an insiders look into D.C. politics and all the players involved in the Vietnam war. "

" A great insight into the causes and thinking by Kennedy officials leading the US into Vietnam. "