Five Presidents

My Extraordinary Journey with Eisenhower, Kennedy, Johnson, Nixon, and Ford

By: Clint Hill, Lisa McCubbin Hill

Narrated by: George Newbern

Length: 14 hrs and 31 mins

Publisher's summary

A rare and fascinating portrait of the American presidency from the number-one New York Times best-selling author of Mrs. Kennedy and Me and Five Days in November.

Secret Service agent Clint Hill brings history intimately and vividly to life as he reflects on his 17 years protecting the most powerful office in the nation. Hill walked alongside Presidents Dwight D. Eisenhower, John F. Kennedy, Lyndon B. Johnson, Richard M. Nixon, and Gerald R. Ford, seeing them through a long, tumultuous era - the Cold War; the Cuban Missile Crisis; the assassinations of John F. Kennedy, Martin Luther King, Jr., and Robert F. Kennedy; the Vietnam War; Watergate; and the resignations of Spiro Agnew and Richard M. Nixon.

Some of his stunning, never-before-revealed anecdotes include:

• Eisenhower's reaction to Russian prime minister Khrushchev's refusal to talk following the U-2 incident
• The torture of watching himself in the Zapruder film in a Secret Service training
• Johnson's virtual imprisonment in the White House during violent anti-Vietnam protests
• His decision to place White House files under protection after a midnight phone call about Watergate
• The challenges of protecting Ford after he pardoned Nixon

With a unique insider's perspective, Hill sheds new light on the characters and personalities of these five presidents, revealing their humanity in the face of grave decisions.

©2016 Hill McCubbin, LLC. (P)2016 Simon & Schuster, Inc.

Interesting, but....

There were some very interesting insights into the various presidents. And some rather entertaining/spellbinding incidents that occurred. But the book could have been reduced by at least a third and possibly more by cutting out the endless references to time spent away from his family, the technical designation of the presidential limousines, the size of the crowds, and how they constantly relied on local assistance.
I wound up having to put the book down because I got so tired of the endless repetition of details.
A pity, because parts of the book were quite fascinating.

Narration flawed by mispronunciation.

As one who was glued to the television during the Watergate hearings, I was distracted from the story by the narrator who didn't bother to find out the correct pronunciation of the names of people and places.

A real drag of a book that should have been terrific

What an opportunity! Serving five of the most vivid Presidents in recent history. Watching them up close and personally.
Clint Hill, loyal and ever mum about anything interesting or new, writes like a Danny do-good fifth grader. The book is narrated by a voice that sounds right out of a high school public speaking class.
Hill's choice of travelogue adjectives on a 15 country tour with Ike is so cliche ridden I had stop the narration. You could go to sleep bored to tears by these squeaky clean, tell-nothing pair! What a shame. A chance of a lifetime drowned in cliches!

Fascinating Journey

As a book that traces the history of the major political events of my lifetime, I found this to be a fascinating journal of one secret service agent's extraordinary eyewitness account of what went on to protect the president of the United States from the 1950's through the 1970's. For me it humanized each of the presidents and have me an even higher regard for the men and women whose jobs it is to protect our nation's leaders, even at the risk of their lives.

True American Hero

With the previous excellent books by Clint Hill and Lisa McCubbin detailing his experiences with JFK it is interesting to hear about his service with the other presidents, as well as a more in depth look at his life after the Secret Service. The only negative is George Newbern's sometimes bland reading and occasional mispronunciations, though that does not diminish the impact of this true American hero's story.

Great Story

What a great story and look into the life of presidents and the important job of the secret service. Mr Hill did a great job relating his story and his experiences and what I appreciate most is that he avoids this sensational gossip that too many seem to engage in these days. one of the things that stood out to me was to be reminded how chaotic things were in the late 60s and early 70s. I remember some of those days being born in 1964, I lived in New York City and remember there being periods of time where it was unsafe to go outside due to the violent protests, and particularly the violence threatened by the Black Panthers and others, Vietnam War protesters hippies Etc.

too often we overlook the people in these important positions, and I was struck and touched by the sense of duty and devotion are secret service members hold towards our country and the president's they serve.

the book was well-written and story well-told. the narration was outstanding and the book well-produced. I'm definitely going to be picking up the other two books written by mr. Hill and wish him the best.

may God bless our country and give us more people like this...

amazing story

I loved this book! Well constructed. I learned so much about the personalities of these presidents as well as the events that defined them.

Wonderful story!

This is a beautifully told story. My only issue is that the reader pronounces Minot, North Dakota as Minute, North Dakota, instead of "My-Not". Other than that, it is a superb book.

Tremendous!

This book was excellent. I love presidential history but am always a little skeptical of someone claiming to have insider information. I thought Clint Hill did a very good job of telling a very interesting story through his eyes without sensationalizing the details. I listened to this book on a long drive and found the hours flying by.

Interesting

I thought the book was quite interesting. It did not go as much into the personality of the presidents he protected as I wanted but it is a very interesting look at the day-to-day life of a Secret Service agent

Informative biography - bit on the dry side

The book was interesting. It's a biography of Clint Hill through his time in the secret service for the period covered by 5 presidents. I was interested to hear how he was recruited & bits about his family but there wasn't enough of this personal insight for me. With his first president he travelled a lot but didn't see much with one quick stop after another on tour. The period covering the Kennedy years & LBJ was most interesting but it lacked an emotional punch. Apparently there are other books devoted to this period. Overall interesting to learn about a world I'm not familiar with, how protection works (or used to) and to draw your own comparisons to how different things must be today. Excellent narration too, although a little monotone at times made me nod off!

History as it happened

I listened to Mrs Kennedy and Me and found that to be so very interesting. This book really brings home how much dedication to duty there is. All the different Presidential egos to deal with.
The service really does go above and beyond. Clint Hill has seen it all.

Well worth a listen!

I was sad when this book ended. It's was very interesting to learn about the back stage life of the people who lived and worked at the White House. If you like modern history you'll love this!

Relaxed walk through American History

The content and prose is very personable and relatable . The Narration is first class in presentation, pace,erudition

Easy listen and quite interesting

This is easy to listen to and quite interesting. However if you’ve read US presidential history you’re unlikely to find much new here. There is less ‘inside’ detail than I expected from a former secret service agent but I suppose he is limited in what he can say. It’s an easy listen though can be a bit dry at times.

Really interesting & enjoyable

The 14 hours 31 minutes flew over. Great insight into the different Presidents he served under.

Love Clint Hill

Excellent audiobook. Compelling inside track on a turbulent time in US history. Easy to listen to and lacks the boredom factor of UK politics. Highly recommended.

Behind the scenes of the guy who protected the most powerful men in the world

He's journey from a normal agent to the presidential detail is phenomenal and his rise through the ranks .
Amazing insight into the Jfk assassination

Fascinating glimpse behind the scenes

I thoroughly enjoyed listening to this book. It offers a unique perspective on the men behind the presidency, along with the development of the secret service.

While, the book started a little slow, with the section on the tours of the Eisenhower administration feeling drawn out, from Kennedy on, the later sections were engrossing. You cant help but marvel at the huge number of historic moments Hill observed through his career.

Lastly, the narration was excellent. I am very happy to recommend the book.