1968: The Year That Rocked the World
by Mark Kurlansky

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Book Reviews of 1968: The Year That Rocked the World

Book Review: A compelling overview of an amazing year
Summary: 5 Stars

'1968' is a broad overview of the major events of the year, including the Tet offensive, the assasination of Robert Kennedy, the Prague Spring, Biafra and the growing black power movemnet. Kurlansky is particularly interested in the growing disaffection of the young on both sides of the Iron curtain and gives a vivid portrayal of the student riots that took place in cities across Europe and the Americas.

I was particularly struck by an account of the Democrat Party convention in Chicago, during which the local police lost control of themsleves and started beating innocent people and smashing cars. As Kurlansky points out, this wasn't the first time something like this had happened, but in 1968 there were now television cameras, recording everything for posterity.

Easy to read, this book is nevertheless scholarly and well-researched. I can't recommend it hughly enough.

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