During the thirteen days in October 1962 when the United States
confronted the Soviet Union over its installation of missiles in Cuba,
few people shared the behind-the-scenes story as it is told here by the
late Senator Robert F. Kennedy. In this unique account, he describes
each of the participants during the sometimes hour-to-hour negotiations,
with particular attention to the actions and views of his brother,
President John F. Kennedy. In a new foreword, the distinguished
historian and Kennedy adviser Arthur Schlesinger, Jr., discusses the
book's enduring importance and the significance of new information about
the crisis that has come to light, especially from the Soviet Union.