Kennedy and Nixon: The Rivalry That Shaped Postwar America

When I bought this--discounted at a church book sale--I probably would have passed had I noticed that the author Christopher was the "Hardball" television commentator famous for his "thrill up my leg" line, but I did not. Nonetheless, the book is an easy read and provides his version of the Kennedy-Nixon friendship and competition. The subtitle oversells the book but he is closer to the mark in regards to the crucial 1960 election when the two young Americans went head to head in the presidential election. The fact that the orally inarticulate Matthews can actually put coherent sentences together is a surprise after having viewed him on television. I guess he has been seduced by the money and fame it brings him.

The work can be seen as a show more companion piece to the author's other work about Kennedy the elusive hero. This work is a more general overview while the rivalry volume concentrates on the Kennedy Nixon friendship and competition. Neither of the Matthew's volumes are as scholarly as the Robert Dallek book about Kennedy; however, both of the author's works are worth reading for a more general understanding of the relationship between Kennedy and Nixon and Kennedy himself.

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Didn't learn much new, but no doubt it was revelatory since it was written right after the Nixon tapes were released. Still, a pleasant enough read.