
Camelot's Court
Inside the Kennedy White House
Failed to add items
Add to Cart failed.
Add to Wish List failed.
Remove from wishlist failed.
Adding to library failed
Follow podcast failed
Unfollow podcast failed
$0.99/mo for the first 3 months

Buy for $31.49
No default payment method selected.
We are sorry. We are not allowed to sell this product with the selected payment method
-
Narrated by:
-
James Lurie
-
By:
-
Robert Dallek
About this listen
Fifty years after John F. Kennedy's assassination, presidential historian Robert Dallek, whom The New York Times calls "Kennedy's leading biographer", delivers a riveting new portrait of this president and his inner circle of advisors, their rivalries, personality clashes, and political battles. In Camelot's Court, Dallek analyzes the brain trust whose contributions to the successes and failures of Kennedy's administration - including the Bay of Pigs, civil rights, the Cuban Missile Crisis, and Vietnam - were indelible.
Kennedy purposefully put together a dynamic team of advisors noted for their brilliance and acumen, including Attorney General Robert Kennedy, Secretary of Defense Robert McNamara, Secretary of State Dean Rusk, National Security Advisor McGeorge Bundy, and trusted aides Ted Sorensen and Arthur Schlesinger. Yet the very traits these men shared also created sharp divisions. Far from being unified, this was an uneasy band of rivals whose ambitions and clashing beliefs ignited fiery internal debates.
Robert Dallek illuminates a president deeply determined to surround himself with the best and the brightest, who often found himself disappointed with their recommendations. The result, Camelot's Court: Inside the Kennedy White House, is a striking portrait of a leader whose wise resistance to pressure and adherence to principle offers a cautionary tale for our own time.
©2013 Robert Dallek (P)2013 HarperCollins PublishersListeners also enjoyed...
-
JFK
- Coming of Age in the American Century, 1917-1956
- By: Fredrik Logevall
- Narrated by: Mark Deakins
- Length: 29 hrs and 27 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
By the time of his assassination in 1963, John F. Kennedy stood at the helm of the greatest power the world had ever seen, a booming American nation that he had steered through some of the most perilous diplomatic standoffs of the Cold War. Born in 1917 to a striving Irish American family that had become among Boston’s wealthiest, Kennedy knew political ambition from an early age, and his meteoric rise to become the youngest elected president cemented his status as one of the most mythologized figures in American history.
-
-
Excellent Portrait of JFK & His Times
- By John David on 12-14-20
By: Fredrik Logevall
-
Franklin D. Roosevelt
- A Political Life
- By: Robert Dallek
- Narrated by: Rick Adamson
- Length: 29 hrs and 47 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
In an era of such great national divisiveness, there could be no more timely biography of one of our greatest presidents than one that focuses on his unparalleled political ability as a uniter and consensus maker. Robert Dallek's Franklin D. Roosevelt: A Political Life takes a fresh look at the many compelling questions that have attracted all his biographers: how did a man who came from so privileged a background become the greatest presidential champion of the country's needy?
-
-
Not bad but,
- By Christopher on 12-20-17
By: Robert Dallek
-
An Unfinished Life
- John F. Kennedy, 1917-1963
- By: Robert Dallek
- Narrated by: Richard McGonagle
- Length: 9 hrs and 15 mins
- Abridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
An Unfinished Life is the first authoritative single-volume life of John F. Kennedy to be written by a historian in nearly four decades. Drawing upon firsthand sources, freshly unearthed documents, and never-before-opened archives, prizewinning historian Robert Dallek reveals more than we ever knew about Jack Kennedy forever changing the way we think about his life, his presidency, and his legacy.
-
-
It’s abridged!!
- By Brad on 02-17-18
By: Robert Dallek
-
An Ordinary Man
- The Surprising Life and Historic Presidency of Gerald R. Ford
- By: Richard Norton Smith
- Narrated by: Fred Sanders
- Length: 36 hrs and 8 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
From the preeminent presidential scholar and acclaimed biographer of historical figures including George Washington, Herbert Hoover, and Nelson Rockefeller comes this eye-opening life of Gerald R. Ford, whose presidency arguably set the course for post-liberal America and a post-Cold War world.
-
-
Must-read Polemic
- By allison h eid on 10-17-23
-
White House by the Sea
- A Century of the Kennedys at Hyannis Port
- By: Kate Storey
- Narrated by: Kathe Mazur
- Length: 11 hrs and 27 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Hyannis Port, Massachusetts, is synonymous with the Kennedy family. It is where, for a hundred years, America’s most storied political family has come to celebrate, bond, play, and grieve. It is also the setting of so many events we remember: JFK giving his presidential acceptance speech, Jackie speaking with a Life magazine reporter just days after her husband’s assassination, Senator Edward Kennedy seeking refuge after the Chappaquiddick crash, Maria Shriver and Arnold Schwarzenegger tying the knot—and even Conor Kennedy courting pop star Taylor Swift.
-
-
A personal look at the Kennedys
- By CrezFive on 07-19-23
By: Kate Storey
-
Incomparable Grace
- JFK in the Presidency
- By: Mark K. Updegrove
- Narrated by: Robin Miles, Mark K. Updegrove
- Length: 9 hrs and 57 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Nearly sixty years after his death, JFK still holds an outsize place in the American imagination. While Baby Boomers remember his dazzling presence as president, millennials more likely know him from advertisements for Omega watches or Ray Ban sunglasses. Yet his years in office were marked by more than his style and elegance. His presidency is a story of a fledgling leader forced to meet unprecedented challenges, and to rise above missteps to lead his nation into a new and hopeful era.
-
-
Nothing new
- By Grace O'Malley on 07-29-24
-
JFK
- Coming of Age in the American Century, 1917-1956
- By: Fredrik Logevall
- Narrated by: Mark Deakins
- Length: 29 hrs and 27 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
By the time of his assassination in 1963, John F. Kennedy stood at the helm of the greatest power the world had ever seen, a booming American nation that he had steered through some of the most perilous diplomatic standoffs of the Cold War. Born in 1917 to a striving Irish American family that had become among Boston’s wealthiest, Kennedy knew political ambition from an early age, and his meteoric rise to become the youngest elected president cemented his status as one of the most mythologized figures in American history.
-
-
Excellent Portrait of JFK & His Times
- By John David on 12-14-20
By: Fredrik Logevall
-
Franklin D. Roosevelt
- A Political Life
- By: Robert Dallek
- Narrated by: Rick Adamson
- Length: 29 hrs and 47 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
In an era of such great national divisiveness, there could be no more timely biography of one of our greatest presidents than one that focuses on his unparalleled political ability as a uniter and consensus maker. Robert Dallek's Franklin D. Roosevelt: A Political Life takes a fresh look at the many compelling questions that have attracted all his biographers: how did a man who came from so privileged a background become the greatest presidential champion of the country's needy?
-
-
Not bad but,
- By Christopher on 12-20-17
By: Robert Dallek
-
An Unfinished Life
- John F. Kennedy, 1917-1963
- By: Robert Dallek
- Narrated by: Richard McGonagle
- Length: 9 hrs and 15 mins
- Abridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
An Unfinished Life is the first authoritative single-volume life of John F. Kennedy to be written by a historian in nearly four decades. Drawing upon firsthand sources, freshly unearthed documents, and never-before-opened archives, prizewinning historian Robert Dallek reveals more than we ever knew about Jack Kennedy forever changing the way we think about his life, his presidency, and his legacy.
-
-
It’s abridged!!
- By Brad on 02-17-18
By: Robert Dallek
-
An Ordinary Man
- The Surprising Life and Historic Presidency of Gerald R. Ford
- By: Richard Norton Smith
- Narrated by: Fred Sanders
- Length: 36 hrs and 8 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
From the preeminent presidential scholar and acclaimed biographer of historical figures including George Washington, Herbert Hoover, and Nelson Rockefeller comes this eye-opening life of Gerald R. Ford, whose presidency arguably set the course for post-liberal America and a post-Cold War world.
-
-
Must-read Polemic
- By allison h eid on 10-17-23
-
White House by the Sea
- A Century of the Kennedys at Hyannis Port
- By: Kate Storey
- Narrated by: Kathe Mazur
- Length: 11 hrs and 27 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Hyannis Port, Massachusetts, is synonymous with the Kennedy family. It is where, for a hundred years, America’s most storied political family has come to celebrate, bond, play, and grieve. It is also the setting of so many events we remember: JFK giving his presidential acceptance speech, Jackie speaking with a Life magazine reporter just days after her husband’s assassination, Senator Edward Kennedy seeking refuge after the Chappaquiddick crash, Maria Shriver and Arnold Schwarzenegger tying the knot—and even Conor Kennedy courting pop star Taylor Swift.
-
-
A personal look at the Kennedys
- By CrezFive on 07-19-23
By: Kate Storey
-
Incomparable Grace
- JFK in the Presidency
- By: Mark K. Updegrove
- Narrated by: Robin Miles, Mark K. Updegrove
- Length: 9 hrs and 57 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Nearly sixty years after his death, JFK still holds an outsize place in the American imagination. While Baby Boomers remember his dazzling presence as president, millennials more likely know him from advertisements for Omega watches or Ray Ban sunglasses. Yet his years in office were marked by more than his style and elegance. His presidency is a story of a fledgling leader forced to meet unprecedented challenges, and to rise above missteps to lead his nation into a new and hopeful era.
-
-
Nothing new
- By Grace O'Malley on 07-29-24
-
After Camelot
- A Personal History of the Kennedy Family - 1968 to the Present
- By: J. Randy Taraborrelli
- Narrated by: Robert Petkoff
- Length: 21 hrs and 59 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
For more than half a century, Americans have been captivated by the Kennedys - their joy and heartbreak, tragedy and triumph, the dark side and the remarkable achievements. In this ambitious and sweeping account, Taraborrelli continues the family chronicle begun with his best-selling Jackie, Ethel, Joan and provides a behind-the-scenes look at the years "after Camelot."
-
-
A Fantastic Listen!!! Highly Recommend!
- By Amazon Customer on 08-24-13
-
Watergate
- By: Garrett M. Graff
- Narrated by: Jacques Roy, Garrett M. Graff
- Length: 25 hrs and 25 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
In the early hours of June 17, 1972, a security guard named Frank Wills enters six words into the log book of the Watergate office complex that will change the course of history: 1:47 AM Found tape on doors; call police. The subsequent arrests of five men seeking to bug and burgle the Democratic National Committee offices—three of them Cuban exiles, two of them former intelligence operatives—quickly unravels a web of scandal that ultimately ends a presidency and forever alters views of moral authority and leadership.
-
-
Elucidating
- By J.B. on 02-23-22
By: Garrett M. Graff
-
Lyndon Johnson and the American Dream
- The Most Revealing Portrait of a President and Presidential Power Ever Written
- By: Doris Kearns Goodwin
- Narrated by: Gabra Zackman, Jim Frangione
- Length: 17 hrs and 1 min
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Doris Kearns Goodwin's classic life of Lyndon Johnson, who presided over the Great Society, the Vietnam War, and other defining moments in the tumultuous 1960s, is a monument in political biography. From the moment the author, then a young woman from Harvard, first encountered President Johnson at a White House dance in the spring of 1967, she became fascinated by the man - his character, his enormous energy and drive, and his manner of wielding these gifts in an endless pursuit of power.
-
-
Unfortunately simple slant.
- By Lynda Rands on 01-22-17
-
Five Presidents
- My Extraordinary Journey with Eisenhower, Kennedy, Johnson, Nixon, and Ford
- By: Clint Hill, Lisa McCubbin Hill
- Narrated by: George Newbern
- Length: 14 hrs and 31 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Secret Service agent Clint Hill brings history intimately and vividly to life as he reflects on his 17 years protecting the most powerful office in the nation. Hill walked alongside Presidents Dwight D. Eisenhower, John F. Kennedy, Lyndon B. Johnson, Richard M. Nixon, and Gerald R. Ford, seeing them through a long, tumultuous era - the Cold War; the Cuban Missile Crisis; the assassinations of John F. Kennedy, Martin Luther King, Jr., and Robert F. Kennedy; the Vietnam War; Watergate; and the resignations of Spiro Agnew and Richard M. Nixon.
-
-
Interesting, but....
- By Papa Charlie on 07-09-17
By: Clint Hill, and others
-
The Final Witness
- By: Paul Landis
- Narrated by: Lane Hakel
- Length: 6 hrs and 44 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Dallas, Texas. November 22, 1963. Shots ring out at Dealey Plaza. The president is struck in the head by a rifle bullet. Confusion reigns. Special Agent Paul Landis is in the follow-up car directly behind JFK’s and is at the president’s limo as soon as it stops at Parkland Memorial Hospital. He is inside Trauma Room #1, where the president is pronounced dead. He is on Air Force One with the president’s casket on the flight back to Washington, DC, an eyewitness to Lyndon Johnson taking the oath of office. What he saw is indelibly imprinted upon his psyche.
-
-
Unique Perspective
- By PL on 12-04-23
By: Paul Landis
-
The Death of a President
- November 20 - November 25, 1963
- By: William Manchester
- Narrated by: Joe Barrett
- Length: 33 hrs and 21 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
As the world still reeled from the tragic and historic events of November 22, 1963, William Manchester set out, at the request of the Kennedy family, to create a detailed, authoritative record of President John F. Kennedy's death, including the days immediately preceding and following the assassination.
-
-
IMPORTANT HISTORIC BOOK
- By Jeff on 12-06-13
-
Five Days in November
- By: Clint Hill, Lisa McCubbin Hill
- Narrated by: Jeremy Bobb
- Length: 3 hrs and 51 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Clint Hill will forever be remembered as the lone secret service agent who jumped onto the car after President Kennedy was shot, clinging to its sides as it sped toward the hospital. Even now, decades after JFK’s presidency, the public continues to be fascinated with the Kennedys - America’s royal family. To mark the 50th anniversary of President John F. Kennedy’s assassination, Hill recounts his indelible memories of those five days leading up to, and after, that tragic day in November 1963. Hill, as Jackie’s guard, experienced those days firsthand.
-
-
unique
- By Thomas on 12-28-13
By: Clint Hill, and others
-
Eisenhower in War and Peace
- By: Jean Edward Smith
- Narrated by: Paul Hecht
- Length: 28 hrs and 22 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Author of the best-seller FDR, Jean Edward Smith is a master of the presidential biography. Setting his sights on Dwight D. Eisenhower, Smith delivers a rich account of Eisenhower’s life using previously untapped primary sources. From the military service in WWII that launched his career to the shrewd political decisions that kept America out of wars with the Soviet Union and China, Smith reveals a man who never faltered in his dedication to serving America, whether in times of war or peace.
-
-
Good, although biased, biography
- By Mike From Mesa on 10-15-12
-
Profiles in Courage
- By: John F. Kennedy
- Narrated by: John F. Kennedy Jr., Caroline Kennedy
- Length: 3 hrs and 10 mins
- Abridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
During 1954-1955, John F. Kennedy, then a US senator, chose eight of his historical colleagues to profile for their acts of astounding integrity in the face of overwhelming opposition. These heroes include John Quincy Adams, Daniel Webster, Thomas Hart Benton, and Robert A. Taft. Awarded the Pulitzer Prize in 1957, Profiles in Courage - now reissued, featuring a new introduction by Caroline Kennedy as well as Robert Kennedy's foreword written for the memorial edition of the volume in 1964 - resounds with timeless lessons.
-
-
Abridged
- By Tom R on 01-04-17
By: John F. Kennedy
-
Jackie
- By: J. Randy Taraborrelli
- Narrated by: Jane Oppenheimer
- Length: 16 hrs and 56 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Based on hundreds of interviews with friends, family, and lovers over a thirty-year period—as well as previously unreleased material from the JFK Library—Kennedy historian J. Randy Taraborrelli paints an unforgettable new portrait of a woman whose flaws and contradictions only serve to make her even more iconic. “I have three lives,” Jackie told a former lover, “public, private and secret.” In this revealing biography, listeners will become intimately familiar with all three.
-
-
Very thorough!
- By LaurieB. on 06-26-24
-
Camelot's End
- Kennedy vs. Carter and the Fight That Broke the Democratic Party
- By: Jon Ward
- Narrated by: John Pruden
- Length: 10 hrs and 26 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
The Carter presidency was on life support. The Democrats, desperate to keep power and yearning to resurrect former glory, turned to Ted Kennedy. Camelot's End details the incredible drama of Kennedy's challenge - what led to it, how it unfolded, and its lasting effects - with cinematic sweep. It is a story about what happened to the Democratic Party when the country's long string of successes, luck, and global dominance following World War II ran its course, and how, on a quest to recapture the magic of JFK, Democrats plunged themselves into an intra-party civil war.
-
-
Does character count in political office?
- By marwalk on 07-29-19
By: Jon Ward
-
JFK's Last Hundred Days
- The Transformation of a Man and the Emergence of a Great President
- By: Thurston Clarke
- Narrated by: Malcolm Hillgartner
- Length: 14 hrs and 48 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
A revelatory, minute-by-minute account of JFK’s final days that asks what might have been. Fifty years after his assassination, President John F. Kennedy’s legend endures. Noted author and historian Thurston Clarke reexamines the last months of the president’s life to show a man in the midst of great change, both in his family and in the key issues of his day: The Cold War, Civil Rights, and Vietnam, finally on the cusp of making good on his extraordinary promise.
-
-
In Depth and Beautifully Written
- By grace on 06-03-23
By: Thurston Clarke
What listeners say about Camelot's Court
Average customer ratingsReviews - Please select the tabs below to change the source of reviews.
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
- Joseph
- 10-17-20
Okay
Not worth the read unless you are very interested specifically in the Vietnam War which predominates the book’s content. Not a good biographical resource on Kennedy.
Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
You voted on this review!
You reported this review!
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
- theProfessor
- 05-28-21
Not Much New Here
If you familiar with this time frame and Kennedy administration, you will not likely find anything new More just a straightfoward chronological history, nothing really indepth about the personalities , dispositions or motivation of the people in "Camelots Court." Heavey emphais on Cuba and Vietnam, but you did not get the feeling you were actually there while the decision were being made.Narrator has a pleasant voice, but does not infuse the book with any energy, emotion, tension, or passion.
Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
You voted on this review!
You reported this review!
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
- izic
- 03-17-15
Incredibly in depth in the best and worst ways
The book is an intensely in depth look at the Kennedy White House's decision making process regarding almost exclusively Vietnam and Cuba. Though it is very detailed, it lacks the narrative appeal that "An Unfinished Life" possessed. As a big fan of nonfiction, American history, and JFK, this book was undoubtedly informative, but struck me as a bit dry, and focused almost entirely on the excruciating minutiae of what every person around Kennedy thought at every moment.
Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
You voted on this review!
You reported this review!
1 person found this helpful
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
- brent lloyd
- 02-08-22
Well Researched but Critically Flawed
Robert Dallek’s return to the world of John F Kennedy and his presidency is once again a well-researched and intimate look at the men and the issues that defined the era and the decisions that have consequences lasting to this day. Dallek’s amount of research and comprehension is made clear throughout this book, and he pays close attention to the details surrounding the Kennedy presidency as well as to the opinions and backgrounds of the men who Kennedy brought in to advise him. The conflicts between these men and with Kennedy himself are fascinating and provide excellent insight into the battles of opinions that led to specific decisions that shaped both the presidency of Kennedy as well as the presidency of his successor. Dallek also does an excellent job of reflecting on this period with a modern lens, while still taking great pains to emphasize the zeitgeist of the era rather than condemn actions that were understandable at the time but have aged poorly in the passage of time.
This book has one critical flaw however that prevents it from rising to a higher level of respect and reverence in the history of political biography. Dallek focuses, almost exclusively, on the foreign policy of the Kennedy administration, specifically on Vietnam, Cuba, and the USSR, the last of which is most often reflected on through the Cuban issue. Dallek’s repeated returns to these issues quickly become worn, with the same issues and the same decisions recurring time and again, and there is a great deal of time spent on events that could be summed up in a paragraph. These extended, repetitive dialogues about the same issues bog down this book, and take what starts out as an intriguing look into the presidency and turns it into a philosophical “what if” regarding the administration’s decisions in Southeast Asia and Cuba. The book would have done better to focus on more domestic problems, and be less repetitive about the goals and observations of administrative efforts in foreign policy.
In general, the research conducted for this book must be respected for the diligence paid, but the excessive focus on just a few subjects and the repetitive observations by Dallek and outcomes by Kennedy advisors drags down the book and doesn’t give any unique insights when the same things happen over and over but are described in unnecessarily long detail. Worth reading for insights in the Kennedy administration’s foreign policy, but as a study of the administration as a whole, this book is lacking.
Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
You voted on this review!
You reported this review!
1 person found this helpful
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
- D M BOYCE
- 09-17-18
Essential
For one would knew quite well the Kennedy presidency this was a very enlightening endever. Would absolutely recommend this book and a good listen. Heartbreaking as looking back know ing the future it still remains worth the journey.
Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
You voted on this review!
You reported this review!
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
- Larry David Fuller
- 11-25-17
Flawed Men and Impossible Choices
An enduring picture of leadership and all that goes with it. I truly enjoyed it.
Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
You voted on this review!
You reported this review!