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Cold Fire

Kennedy's Northern Front

ebook
2 of 2 copies available
2 of 2 copies available

Forget all you think you know about the Kennedy years. With narrative flair and sparkling storytelling, acclaimed historian John Boyko explores the crucial period when America and its allies were fighting the Cold War's most treacherous battles, Canadians were trading sovereignty for security, and everyone feared a nuclear holocaust.

At the centre of this story are three leaders. President John F. Kennedy pledged to pay any price to advance his vision for America's defence and needed Canada to step smartly in line. Fighting him at every turn was Conservative prime minister John Diefenbaker, an unapologetic nationalist trying to bolster Canada's autonomy. Liberal leader Lester Pearson, the Nobel Prize-winning diplomat, sought a middle ground.
     Boyko employs meticulous research and newly released documents to present shocking revelations. During the Cuban Missile Crisis, Canadian warships guarded America's Atlantic coast and Canada suffered a silent coup d'état. Canada was involved in Kennedy's sliding America into Vietnam. Kennedy knew the nuclear missiles he was forcing on Canada would be decoys, there only to draw Soviet nuclear fire. Kennedy's pollster and political adviser travelled to Ottawa under a fake passport to help defeat the Canadian government. And, perhaps most startlingly, if not for Diefenbaker, Kennedy may have survived the bullets in Dallas.

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    • Library Journal

      February 1, 2016

      The United States has long sought to exert influence on its northern neighbor. While American interference in Canada has not been as extreme as it has been in other countries, it is still significant. Nowhere is this more evident than during the short presidency of John F. Kennedy as highlighted in this latest offering from Boyko (Blood and Daring). An adept researcher, the author brings to light some surprising key elements of Kennedy's policies as well as documents from former Canadian Prime Minister John Diefenbaker and his political rival and eventual successor in Ottawa, the Nobel Prize-winning diplomat Lester Pearson. Boyko concludes that the United States and Canada took different paths after sharing a common past. Diefenbaker was a nation-builder intent on bolstering Canada's autonomy, which frustrated U.S. policymakers as they needed Canada's cooperation in order to set up detection systems and weapons to protect themselves from the Soviet Union. The author discovers that Kennedy's administration actually assisted Pearson in defeating Diefenbaker in the 1963 election by sending knowledgeable members of Kennedy's own staff to bolster Pearson's campaign. VERDICT A useful addition to any modern North American history collection, Boyko's well-researched account will appeal to those curious about lesser-known aspects of Kennedy's time in office.--Brian Renvall, Mesalands Community Coll., Tucumcari, NM

      Copyright 2016 Library Journal, LLC Used with permission.

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