Most Dangerous: Daniel Ellsberg and the Secret History of the Vietnam War
Most Dangerous: Daniel Ellsberg and the Secret History of the Vietnam War
Sheinkin, Steve
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Square Fish
Annotation: From award-winning author Steve Sheinkin comes a tense, exciting exploration of what the Times deemed "the greatest story of the century": how Daniel Ellsberg transformed from obscure government analyst into "the most dangerous man in America," and risked everything to expose the government's deceit.
Genre: [Biographies]
 
Reviews: 8
Catalog Number: #6630429
Format: Paperback
Publisher: Square Fish
Copyright Date: 2019
Edition Date: 2019 Release Date: 09/24/19
Pages: 384 pages
ISBN: 1-250-18083-X
ISBN 13: 978-1-250-18083-4
Dewey: 921
LCCN: 2014040761
Dimensions: 23 cm.
Subject Heading:
Ellsberg, Daniel.
Rand Corporation. Employees.
Pentagon Papers.
Whistle blowing. United States. History. 20th century.
Vietnam War, 1961-1975.
United States. Foreign relations. Vietnam.
Vietnam. Foreign relations.
United States. Politics and government. 1969-1974.
Language: English
Reviews:
Starred Review ALA Booklist

Starred Review Sheinkin wbery Honor winner for Bomb: The Race to Build d Steal e World's Most Dangerous Weapon (2012) ckles the tangled narrative of the Vietnam War in his latest book. Focusing on the life of Daniel Ellsberg, Sheinkin offers a fascinating portrait of a brilliant, idealistic man and his decision to leak the Pentagon Papers, revealing unsavory government secrets about America's involvement in Vietnam. A product of the Cold War, Ellsberg was intrigued by questions of risk and crisis decision making, leading to his career as a think-tank analyst and eventual role as government whistle-blower. To create a broader backdrop for the narrative, Sheinkin includes stories of prisoners of war and White House machinations, though the POWs fall away by the end of the book as the secrets spiral beyond everyone's control, even Ellsberg's. Readers will not have much empathy for the government leaders as portrayed in this book, although Sheinkin does reveal a softer side to the otherwise ruthless Richard Nixon. Ellsberg's time spent with patrols in Vietnam is particularly well written, relaying the palpable atmosphere of hopeless ambiguity that strongly influenced Ellsberg's decisions. Sheinkin's extensive research includes black-and-white period photographs and author interviews with Ellsberg and his wife. Most Dangerous is thorough and challenging, and readers are left to determine whether Ellsberg d whistle-blowers in general a hero or a traitor. Powerful and thought-provoking.

Reviewing Agencies: - Find Other Reviewed Titles
Starred Review ALA Booklist
Starred Review Bulletin of the Center for Children's Books
Starred Review for Library Journal
National Council For Social Studies Notable Children's Trade
ALA/YALSA Quick Picks for Reluctant Young Adult Readers
Voice of Youth Advocates
Wilson's Children's Catalog
Wilson's Junior High Catalog
Bibliography Index/Note: Includes bibliographical references (pages [339]-372) and index.
Word Count: 63,654
Reading Level: 6.7
Interest Level: 5-9
Accelerated Reader: reading level: 6.7 / points: 11.0 / quiz: 176659 / grade: Middle Grades+
Reading Counts!: reading level:5.7 / points:16.0 / quiz:Q67216
Lexile: 890L
Night in the Gulf of Tonkin was morning on the east coast of the United States. Daniel Ellsberg parked his white Triumph Spitfire convertible in the sprawling parking lot of the Pentagon. He got out of his car and joined the streams of men and women walking toward the massive five-sided building. This was the first day of his new job.
 Ellsberg climbed the stairs to the third floor and walked down the hall to John McNaughton’s office. It was a large suite with windows looking out across the Potomac River to the Washington Monument and the Capitol dome. McNaughton’s secretary kept watch from a desk just outside the boss’s private room. Other assistants sat in cubicles. Ellsberg entered his tiny workspace—“a cubbyhole,” he called it—barely big enough for a desk and chair, a bookcase, and two safes for classified files. There was a little window with a view of Washington. He sat down and began reading through a pile of papers.
 He did not have long to wait for the crisis his boss had promised. “My very first day on the job,” he later said, “all hell broke loose.”

Excerpted from The Pentagon Papers by Steve Sheinkin
All rights reserved by the original copyright owners. Excerpts are provided for display purposes only and may not be reproduced, reprinted or distributed without the written permission of the publisher.

Most Dangerous: Daniel Ellsberg and the Secret History of the Vietnam War is New York Times bestselling author Steve Sheinkin's award-winning nonfiction account of an ordinary man who wielded the most dangerous weapon: the truth. "Easily the best study of the Vietnam War available for teen readers."-- Kirkus Reviews (starred review) A YALSA Excellence in Nonfiction Award winner A National Book Award finalist A Bulletin of the Center for Children's Books Blue Ribbon book A Los Angeles Times Book Prize for Young Adult Literature finalist Selected for the Notable Social Studies Trade Books for Young People List In 1964, Daniel Ellsberg was a U.S. government analyst, helping to plan a war in Vietnam. It was the height of the Cold War, and the government would do anything to stop the spread of communism--with or without the consent of the American people. As the fighting in Vietnam escalated, Ellsberg turned against the war. He had access a top-secret government report known as the Pentagon Papers, and he knew it could blow the lid off of years of government lies. But did he have the right to expose decades of presidential secrets? And what would happen to him if he did it? A lively book that interrogates the meanings of patriotism, freedom, and integrity, the National Book Award finalist Most Dangerous further establishes Steve Sheinkin--author of Newbery Honor book Bomb as a leader in children's nonfiction. This thoroughly-researched and documented book can be worked into multiple aspects of the common core curriculum. "Gripping."-- New York Times Book Review "A master of fast-paced histories...[this] is Sheinkin's most compelling one yet. "-- Washington Post Also by Steve Sheinkin: Bomb: The Race to Build--and Steal--the World's Most Dangerous Weapon The Notorious Benedict Arnold: A True Story of Adventure, Heroism & Treachery Undefeated: Jim Thorpe and the Carlisle Indian School Football Team The Port Chicago 50: Disaster, Mutiny, and the Fight for Civil Rights Which Way to the Wild West?: Everything Your Schoolbooks Didn't Tell You About Westward Expansion King George: What Was His Problem?: Everything Your Schoolbooks Didn't Tell You About the American Revolution Two Miserable Presidents: Everything Your Schoolbooks Didn't Tell You About the Civil War Born to Fly: The First Women's Air Race Across America

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