1960 - David Pietrusza

Until now, the most authoritative study of the 1960 presidential race between John F Kennedy, Lynden B Johnson and Richard Nixon, was Theodore White?s Pulitzer Prize-winning The Making of the President 1960. But White, as a trusted insider, didn?t tell all. Here?s the rest of the story - combining an engaging narrative with exhaustive research, Pietrusza chronicles this pivotal election in which presidential debates were first televised, showing a tentative and exhausted Nixon, thus forever altering American politics. With 80 million viewers passing judgment, Nixon?s poll numbers dropped as the charismatic Kennedy?s star rose. Nixon learned his lesson - resting, reluctantly wearing makeup and challenging JFK more aggressively - but the damage was done. Pietrusza conveys the drama of that tumultuous year, all built on painstaking research and solid historical scholarship. With the 2008 American elections approaching, politics will be on everyone?s mind and 1960: LBJ vs. JFK vs. Nixon will transform the way readers see modern American history.