Ask Not: The Inauguration of John F. Kennedy and the Speech That Changed America

Thurston Clarke

Dec 2010 · Sold by Penguin

About this ebook

2013 is the 50th Anniversary of JFK’s assassination.

A narrative of Kennedy's quest to create a speech that would distill American dreams and empower a new generation, Ask Not is a beautifully detailed account of the inauguration and the weeks preceding it. During a time when America was divided, and its citizens torn by fears of war, John F. Kennedy took office and sought to do more than just reassure the American people. His speech marked the start of a brief, optimistic era. Thurston Clarke's portrait of JFK is balanced, revealing the president at his most dazzlingly charismatic and cunningly pragmatic.

Thurston Clarke's latest book, JFK's Last Hundred Days, is currently available in hardcover.

Ratings and reviews

makes us remember what we lost. Clark's other book "Last Campaign" about RFK great as well .

About the author

Thurston Clarke is the author of nine widely acclaimed works of fiction and nonfiction, including California Fault, a New York Times notable book; Equator; By Blood and Fire; Pearl Harbor Ghosts, the basis for the CBS Pearl Harbor documentary; and the bestselling Lost Hero, which was made into an award-winning NBC miniseries about Raoul Wallenberg. He has written for Vanity Fair, Glamour, Outside, Travel Holiday, Condé Nast Traveler, and numerous other magazines and newspapers. He is the recipient of a Guggenheim Fellowship, the Publication Award for the Geographic Society of Chicago, and a Lowell Thomas Award for travel literature. He lives with his wife and three daughters on Lake Champlain in upstate New York.