KENNEDY, John F.

Why England Slept.

“A man may die, nations may rise and fall, but an idea lives on": Why England Slept; Finely Bound

New York: Wilfred Funk, Inc, 1940.

$1,600.00

Out of Stock Item Number: RRB-129627

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First edition of John F. Kennedy's first book. Octavo, bound in full morocco, gilt titles and ruling to the spine, raised bands, gilt ruled to the front and rear panels, marbled endpapers, all edges gilt. In fine condition.

Published the year Kennedy graduated from Harvard, Why England Slept was an expansion of his senior thesis. The title is a variation on the title of Winston Churchill’s work, While England Slept, published about two years before Kennedy’s. It was dedicated to John's parents, Rose and Joe Kennedy. In this work he attempts to explain why England was so poorly prepared for World War II and why England’s leaders settled upon the disastrous policies of appeasement. The book served as a warning to those in our country who felt that appeasing Hitler and staying out of the war was a viable option. It became a bestseller in the United States and went through several printings in its first year. (Newcomb, 10)