Most Dangerous: Daniel Ellsberg and the Secret History of the Vietnam War

Gr 7 Up—Here Sheinkin tells the story of activist and military analyst Daniel Ellsberg and the famous Pentagon Papers, which were written while the United States was still fighting the war in Vietnam. The top-secret study revealed the many subterfuges used over the course of four presidencies to prolong the war solely for political gain. Lyndon Johnson and Richard Nixon were particularly complicit and made it known that they did not want to lose a war on "their watch." To that end, they went to great lengths to mislead the American people when we were losing almost from day one. Ellsberg decided that the document should be made public and the lies exposed in an effort to end the war. Ray Porter does a marvelous job reading this book. The subject matter requires a certain amount of gravitas, and his voice provides it. His pacing is just right, and the modulation of his voice for emphasis is spot-on. Dialects come into play as well. In particular, Johnson had a well-known Texas drawl that Porter captures perfectly. This is a must-listen for students interested in history and government and for those listeners who like intrigue. Ethical dilemmas make for great discussion topics, and this is the ideal option to seed such conversations.