Patrick Kennedy: The Rise to Power

I was initially alarmed at the slender length of the book, and had braced myself for choppy reading and hurried accounts. I was glad I kept an open mind, because this book easily surpased all of my content expectations. West neither massacres nor coddles his subject, and I could actually identify with some of Kennedy's emotions and struggles to define himself. As a college student, I was very impressed that he was in the legislature while finishing up his degree---no easy feat in a state of any size. His personal health led him to identify with the disadvantaged and disempowered. Tracing his childhood and young adulthood, West shows how the "un-Kennedy" Kennedy emerged to become the chair of the DCCC. For a public figure, Kennedy has managed to keep his life largely private and scandal free. He does not engage in the life style that has created headlines for so many other members of the family. Although I am more partial to his father's voting record, I respect the niche Kennedy carved out on his own terms and was impressed with the many different things he had accomplished. This book is especially inspirational for young democratic politicians.

This book provides a highly readable account of the Kennedy's political operation. Generally sympathetic to the family, but hard-hitting at times. Good stories from people who have worked for the Kennedys as well as those who have opposed them. The average person would like this book!

I expected the worst and was pleasantly surprised to get the best. This book by Prof. West is a fair, in-depth and thoughtful account of a young "celebrity" politician who challenged himself to succeed and so far is doing a pretty good job at it, according to Prof. West. The book gives an in-depth look at the early struggles of Patrick Kennedy, son of the famous Senator Ted Kennedy (and his likeable mom, Joan) and heir to the Kennedy fame. It chronicles the family and public life of this young man's rise to poltical power (number 5 Democrat in the House of Representatives yet he is only in his early 30's).What I liked most about this book is that it was not a typical knee-jerk analysis of the Kennedy's and I felt truly showed Patrick Kennedy as a human being, committed public servant and rising star. Hats off to Prof. West for his research, his fair analysis, and his ability to tell a good story.