Praise from a Future Generation: The Assassination of John F. Kennedy and the First Generation Critics of the Warren Report (Hardcover)

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Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly

For more than 40 years, a small band of self-anointed investigators have made a cottage industry out of critiquing the Warren Commission Report on the assassination of JFK and postulating elaborate theories associated with that tragedy. Kelin—one of the second generation of critics and the founder of the JFK assassination Web magazine Fair Play—pays homage to the first generation who, unlike craven mainstream historians, he says, refused to buckle under the most subversive lies ever told the American people. Kelin explores in detail the work of a parade of investigators, including prosecutor Jim Garrison (immortalized in Oliver Stone's controversial film JFK); Rush to Judgment author Mark Lane; smalltown newspaper editor Penn Jones Jr. (who made a specialty of investigating the strange deaths of assassination witnesses over the course of several decades), and poultry farmer and Whitewash author Harold Weisberg. The book retreads the familiar territory of the Zapruder film and the grassy knoll and concludes with this year's revelation of the existence of another film of the assassination, taken by a spectator. If Vincent Bugliosi thought his mammoth Reclaiming History would put an end to this debate, Kelin is determined to prove him wrong. (Oct.)
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Review

"Kelin shows us how a small band of average Americans, through relentless dedication, perseverance, and a tireless pursuit of truth, permanently altered the consciousness of a nation."  —James DiEugenio, author, Destiny Betrayed

"In his fine account of this endeavor by [a] tiny band of researchers, [Kelin] preserves that which would otherwise have been lost forever."  —Vincent J. Salandria, author, False Mystery: Essays on the Assassination of JFK

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Product Details

• Hardcover: 608 pages
• Publisher: Wings Press (October 1, 2007)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0916727327
• ISBN-13: 978-0916727321
• Product Dimensions: 9.3 x 6.4 x 1.8 inches
• Shipping Weight: 2.4 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.8 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (10 customer reviews)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #482,427 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

24 of 25 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Profiles in Courage, November 22, 2007

By	Nick Anez - See all my reviews

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On November 22, 1963, President John F. Kennedy was assassinated in Dallas, Texas. Several months later, the Warren Commission Report proclaimed that there was no conspiracy and that Lee Harvey oswald was the lone assassin. It is probable that this official document, designed to deliberately deceive the American people, would have succeeded in its objectives if not for the efforts of a small group of individuals who detected inconsistencies, improbabilities and unqualified lies in the report. These individuals eventually succeeded against impossible odds in exposing the most reprehensible hoax ever perpetuated upon the American public, a monumental deception that covered up the true facts about the murder of JFK. In this impeccably researched book, author John Kelin authenticates this first generation of critics and their unrelenting quest for justice. To discover the truth about the assassination, they waged an extraordinary battle against a gigantic bureacracy that was aided and abetted by the mass media. With courage and commitment, they battled powerful antagonists who had unlimited resources, all of which were used to ridicule and silence them. But they persevered and as a result of their groundbreaking efforts as well as those of their successors, the only people who still believe the Warren Report are those who are woefully ignorant of the facts that have been disclosed over the past four decades. But Mr. Kelin does more than record their indefatigable labors and the indisputable results of their investigations. He also delves into their personal lives, allowing readers to intimately know them and subsequently witness their human frailties along with their sacrifices. They emerge as fully three-dimensional people, average persons from different walks of life who shared an astonishing commitment to exposing the lies of the establishment. Mr. Kelin deserves credit for bringing long-overdue praise to these relatively unknown heroes, many of whom are no longer with us. Now, because of the author's equally admirable commitment to historical truth, they will forever be remembered. They live on in the present and future generations of critics who are determined to achieve justice for a slain president and to restore this nation's sense of honor. This is an important book that exposes the worst of America, as represented by the murderous conspirators, and the best of America, as represented by those noble critics whose endeavors symbolize profiles in courage. Future generations will praise not only these critics but Mr. Kelin as well.

27 of 29 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars At Last!, October 22, 2007

By	Steven M. Martin (Golden, co USA) - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

John Kelin's book, "Praise from a Future Generation," does what no other book on JFK's assassination has done before. For the first time, the story of those first brave few who dared challenge the official findings of the Warren Commission has been told. They were ordinary citizens: lawyers, housewives, reporters. Together, however, they managed to change they way an entire nation percieved those bloody days in November, 1963. Kelin's research is extraordinary, his storytelling equally skilled. Whether you see yourself as an expert on the Kennedy murder or just an interested novice, this book is a historical must!

18 of 20 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Impressive, January 8, 2008

By	Doug Weldon (USA) - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

I have read over 500 books on the Kennedy assassination and have been involved with this for thirty years and I have met some of the individuals in this book. Even absent my interest in the assasination, this is one of the finest books on any subject that I have ever read. The writing is superb and the organization is outstanding. This is a book that merits being on top of the best seller list. As I work on a book on this topic, it places in perspective the fact that truth is not determined by consensus, but is determined by its own virtues. These people never forgot that meaning. Any step one makes towards truth can only come from standing on the shoulders of many giants. The people in this book were such giants. Thanks to the author (who I have not met)for offering this gem.

Doug Weldon