
Robert Kennedy
His Life
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Narrated by:
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Ray Porter
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By:
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Evan Thomas
About this listen
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Unfortunately simple slant.
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Very, very good, but very, very long.
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Critic reviews
"Thomas' book sheds new light on a man, an era, and a family about whom Americans will probably never know the whole truth." (Publishers Weekly)
"Friends and foes have spun enough myths about RFK to bewilder the casual reader; Thomas sets out to examine the evidence....A solid, judicious life of a politician whose tragic death inspired a generation of what-if history." (Booklist)
"Robert F. Kennedy....is well served by this gracefully written, thoroughly researched, and accessible popular biography....Thomas' narrative, skillfully woven from numerous interviews, vividly reveals a very human Kennedy." (Library Journal)
What listeners say about Robert Kennedy
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- Josh Lammers
- 04-11-18
Excellent
Very comprehensive and psychological. Instead of putting a box around historical figure and illuminating what happened with in that box, Thomas weaves the characters in the culture of the time. Ray Porter is amazing. I’ll be sure to check out more books narrated by Can you call when you have a sec?
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- richard
- 06-06-16
wonderful informative book
great book. reader does an excellent job with pace and tone. shows Bobby Kennedy great moments and failures objectively
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- Brian Sky
- 09-03-18
Must read
One of the most riveting books of all time. An absolute must read regardless of political leanings.
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Overall
- Donald
- 01-11-08
Excellent
A well researched, well read book. I almost passed on this book based on the couple of reviews that pan the reader. How glad I am that I listened anyway. The book is well researched and, accordingly, has numerous quotations, even "starting in mid-sentence." The reader's change of voice makes it crystal clear what material is the author's and what belongs to the historical characters. I can't imagine listening without such a reading. An audio listener would miss much that the reader would know from the printed page. Just perfect.
Regarding the content, Thomas is masterful. Good biographies put the reader "there." Great ones put the reader "inside the subject." The best ones let the author's understanding of the subject explain how and what the subject was thinking, and the author lays out the rationale so the explanation is real and not mere conjecture. This is true throughout this book, from Bobby's childhood to his actions throughout the complex relationship with Hoover.
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10 people found this helpful
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- Jason Warren
- 08-22-15
Great book, ruined.
Like others here, I would have really enjoyed this book if it had been read by almost anyone else. The narrator's constant use of (really bad) impressions was jarring. He doesn't do any of them particularly well, so one wonders why he was allowed to do them at all. Voices are fine in fiction, but completely unnecessary in a biography.
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3 people found this helpful
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- jmcmorris
- 10-15-20
Excellent even handed review
Thomas book is an excellent evenhanded review of RFK I’ve read many hero worshiping books of RFK this one shows him warts and all. Interesting bios of the Giants of the time LBJ, King, Hoover, JFK.
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- Amazon Fan
- 02-27-11
Realistic
The author of this book wrote it with an interest in history, not in mythology. He stated and correctly so, it was not clear that RFK would have even won the nomination had he survived. While the book was tedious at times, so was RFK's life. The author did an excellent job in giving us a real life view of what RFK was like, pointing out his failings as well as his successes.
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- Jason Gansauer
- 03-18-21
A Complete Biography
Some don’t like the “voices” the narrator uses. They must not be familiar with other Audible readers who do the same. I was only bothered by the intrusive clicks of the stop and start of the recorder. I’m sure technicians could have edited them out.
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- Kate+Mitchell Powell
- 12-31-08
eye-opening
The book is well researched and gives a wide-ranging background on Bobbie, which is wonderful -- and eye-opening -- the great and the worst of the man. Gives a good background on the family as well, and the narrator is one of the best I have ever heard -- we will look for his narrations again.
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1 person found this helpful
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- Lynn
- 04-10-25
Very unbiased review of RFK
Interesting and informative of a Kennedy discussing the good and bad about someone who was loved and hated.
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