The Shattered Crystal Ball: Fear and Learning in the Cuban Missile Crisis - Hardcover

. . . this study is original and important . . . * Foreign Affairs * Psychologist James Blight has written a book that is an extraordinarily accurate and insightful account of the Cuban missile crisis. I remember well the fear of which he writes so persuasively. -- Robert S. McNamara, Secretary of Defense under Presidents John F. Kennedy and Lyndon B. Johnson (1960-1968) Blight's book . . . also holds true for the Soviet leadership. I recommend this book to everyone who wants a taste of what it was like in those momentous days in the White House, and . . . in the Kremlin. -- Sergei Khrushchev Blight offers a fresh analysis of the crisis and draws new, policy-relevant conclusion. * Armed Forces Journal International * A superb book. One is tempted to recommend this elegantly written, intense book for all users. Blight marries the disciplines of psychology, literature, and political science into what is perhaps the most intriguing study of the Cuban missile crisis yet to appear....The argument is provocative, the writing superb, and the lesson important. * CHOICE *

This study of the resolution of the Cuban Missile Crisis provides a contribution to the field of international relations and nuclear psychology. The book contains a reassessment of the lessons learned from the crisis. A number of political theorists have indicated that historically, if world leaders had access to a crystal ball, they would have foreseen the dire consequences of their military actions and would have never taken the steps they did. In "The Shattered Crystal Ball" the author believes the Soviet, Cuban and US leaders were able to look, to see the future shatter and to step back from nuclear disaster. Blight argues that the fear of nuclear war was powerful and that it was the controlling factor in the outcome of the crisis. This study is intended to be of interest to students of political science, psychology, history and US policy analysis and national security.