As I wrote in my last book review, I am a huge history buff. I have never been big into the Kennedy Assassination and its ever-revolving door of conspiracy theories. Every year or so I get into it and read some of the latest and I will admit, they all make me think.

But this book, The Kennedy Detail by Gerald Blaine, was something I randomly found and am glad I picked up. I’ve never made a secret about my interest in politics, my run for mayor or my general interest in news.

I have attended events where the sitting president was speaking, as well as events with the sitting vice-president and the speaker of the house. Each time, I got to experience first-hand what present-day Secret Service protection is like. I must say, reading about how it worked in the early 1960′s was interesting if not surprising.

For instance, I have always been surprised, and even more so after reading this book, about the open-air car that President Kennedy always rode around it. One fact that slips through American history textbooks is that the car Kennedy used in 1963, had a hard-top that could be installed which undoubtedly would have saved his life on that day in November.

The book obviously focused on the agents assigned to the Kennedy family detail, and though that, the reader gets to see how active President Kennedy was and how kind he was to the agents who were charged with protecting him. He often joked with them. Additionally, Jackie comes off as a sincerely genuine and caring person to the agents.

Overall, the goals of the book is to give the readers a sense of life inside the Kennedy Detail and put to rest each and every conspiracy theory that says the Secret Service was either to blame, or was at fault.

Why You Should Read It:

• If you are a fan or have any interested in Camelot, this is a unique insight into the story
• History and conspiracy theories have not been kind to the Secret Service in regards to the Kennedy Assassination. There will always be unanswered questions about what happened at Parkland Hospital, but this clears up what happened in the protection detail.
• You get to see the inner-workings of our security and how antiquated it was to deal with threats in the 1960′s.

What You Can Expect to Walk Away With:

• A deeper understanding of President Kennedy’s passion for the people
• An appreciation for the agents who in a split second will give their lives for those they protect
• A few answered questions that put to rest some of the craziest conspiracy theories around
• And finally, you will see how important protecting the president was to Kennedy’s agents, how devastated they were, which for me, puts to rest that they – in any way – were not involved

I have previously reviewed other books in the history category including Decision Points, The Revolutionary Paul Revere, and Team of Rivals.