Washington goes to war

by David Brinkley

Hardcover, 1988

Status

Available

Genres

Publication

New York : A.A. Knopf : Distributed by Random House, 1988.

Description

David Brinkley, one of America's most respected and celebrated news commentators, turns his journalistic skills to a personal account of the tumultuous days of World War II in the sleepy little Southern town that was Washington, D.C. Carrying us from the first days of the war through Roosevelt's death and the celebration of VJ Day, Brinkley surrounds us with fascinating people. Here are the charismatic President Roosevelt and the woman spy, code name "Cynthia." Here, too, are the diplomatic set, new Pentagon officials, and old-line society members -- aka "Cave Dwellers" We meet the brashest and the brightest who actually ran the government, and the countless men and women who came to support the war effort in any way they could -- all seeking to share in the adventure of their generation.… (more)

User reviews

LibraryThing member EricCostello

Entertaining and acerbic look at Washington, D.C. in the 1939-1945 period. Brinkley was there for a portion of the time, from 1943 as a White House correspondent for NBC News. Much of what he didn't see first-hand comes from contemporary accounts and memories by those he interviewed. Congress does

not come off at all well in this analysis, with the possible exception of Speaker Sam Rayburn. One interesting angle explored in the book is the massive bureaucratic muddle that engulfed the government as it went on to war, and how it was never really resolved.

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