About book They Killed Our President: 63 Reasons To Believe There Was A Conspiracy To Assassinate JFK (2013)
I really wanted to like this book. I admire everyone who tackles this issue. There are few rewards and lots of obstacles. But I've read a number of books on this topic, and I have to say this one ranks as one of the worst.First, the positives: Ventura divides the subject matter in a way that makes it easy to digest, with chapters on "The Evidence," "The Cover-Up," "The Witnesses," and "The Why, Who, and How." One downside of this categorization is that some of the material fits more than one place and has to be repeated, but overall, I think it's a plan that works.Ventura also covers a lot of territory. He has done his homework and knows the work of other conspiracy theorists well.Now the negatives: 99% of this material has been covered elsewhere. There is almost no new research. That might not be so bad if the book were presented as a compendium of the research out there, but it's not. The most egregious fault is that Ventura uses block quotations over and over again, not to bring forward evidence in the words of the person presenting it but rather to give opinions about the evidence. It's as though the author doesn't think his own opinion carries any weight but if he can say that so-and-so well-known expert also thinks a certain thing, then we will believe it. The sources quoted to prove the "facts" are rarely first-hand. Often they are third-hand! "So-and-so said that so-and-so said that such-and-such was true" -- this doesn't prove anything, but Ventura doesn't even seem to realize this. The style of writing is also annoying. Superlatives are liberally sprayed throughout to convince us: "A very credible witness," "A completely convincing story," and on and on. I would like to make my own decision as to whether what he presents is convincing, thank you very much. Also, a minor annoyance: I have never seen block quotations centered before, as they are here.If you've read a lot of this kind of thing, you will probably be as annoyed as I was because there are in fact some very good books on this subject by people who actually are good journalists. If you haven't read anything else on this subject, you will undoubtedly learn something. But the problem is that, since fact and opinion are undifferentiated here, you won't know exactly what.
There are so many JFK assassination books written every year that for newcomers or those simply wanting to catch up on the latest evidence it's hard to figure out where to start. Fortunately, this book functions as a pretty good overview of exactly where the current research stands. It's right on time too -- this year is the 50th anniversary of the bloody coup that removed JFK, the key political fulcrum of the latter half of the 20th century. Divided into 63 bite-size chapters, Jesse serves up the key points in the case presenting the latest research and known facts in his "straight talk" style. My only critique is that some of the later chapters (after about chapter 50) aren't as cogent and compelling as the earlier ones, but I'm guessing they were added for the sake of completeness, and to pound the point ("They Killed Our President") home that much more. For anyone waffling about whether there was conspiracy to kill JFK (and still is a conspiracy to cover it up), this book should clear things up for you pretty quickly. For those interested in researching the the assassination further, it should also function as an index of the best research and best evidence.
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While Mr. Ventura's personal flamboyance would seem, at first, to detract from his reliability as a historian, his handling of the subject matter is surprisingly well documented and footnoted. I generally dismiss most conspiracy theories as so much sensationalism, but this book raises enough well documented facts to make a serious case for Kennedy having been murdered by our own government. If there are any serious rebuttals to these arguments, I have yet to find them. The book leaves me with the disquieting conclusion that this portion of our national history has been falsified by powerful players in this national tragedy. Well worth reading.
—Richard Gipson
A generous 2-starsThere are some very good books about the JFK assassination. This is not one of them. While he occasionally makes a good point or raises a good question, most of it is just bluster and bullshit; anyone without the relevant background information may not know which is which. In short, if you have a pretty good understanding of the issues surrounding the JFK assassination, you might find some value in this one; otherwise, don’t touch this with a 10-foot pole. Better to avoid it altogether than have to unlearn bad information.
—Chuck
Like with the O'Reilly book, I am intrigued by this period in U.S. history so I'll read anything I can get my hands on no matter who the author may be. Jesse Ventura can be weird at times and this book was no different. Many of the points in here are interesting and bring up issues I've always had problems with concerning the official story regarding the Kennedy assassination. So, it was a great read from that perspective. I only give it 3 stars because occasionally the book slips into rants and points that are not backed up by much other than hearsay and second-hand information. And, the conclusion reads like nothing more than a campaign speech from Ventura on how he would fix things today if he were in charge. Again, many of the things in here are worth discussing so I did enjoy the book and I think most people will if you get past who wrote it and his occasional political comments.
—Jonathan Webb
