Gambling with Armageddon

Nuclear Roulette from Hiroshima to the Cuban Missile Crisis

By: Martin J. Sherwin

Narrated by: Mark Bramhall

Length: 18 hrs and 50 mins

Publisher's summary

From the Pulitzer Prize-winning author of American Prometheus comes the first effort to set the Cuban Missile Crisis, with its potential for nuclear holocaust, in a wider historical narrative of the Cold War — how such a crisis arose, and why at the very last possible moment it didn't happen.

In this groundbreaking look at the Cuban Missile Crisis, Martin Sherwin not only gives us a riveting sometimes hour-by-hour explanation of the crisis itself, but also explores the origins, scope, and consequences of the evolving place of nuclear weapons in the post-World War II world. Mining new sources and materials, and going far beyond the scope of earlier works on this critical face-off between the United States and the Soviet Union — triggered when Khrushchev began installing missiles in Cuba at Castro's behest — Sherwin shows how this volatile event was an integral part of the wider Cold War and was a consequence of nuclear arms. 

Gambling with Armageddon looks in particular at the original debate in the Truman Administration about using the Atomic Bomb; the way in which President Eisenhower relied on the threat of massive retaliation to project US power in the early Cold War era; and how President Kennedy, though unprepared to deal with the Bay of Pigs debacle, came of age during the Cuban Missile Crisis. Here too is a clarifying picture of what was going on in Khrushchev's Soviet Union. 

Martin Sherwin has spent his career in the study of nuclear weapons and how they have shaped our world. Gambling with Armegeddon is an outstanding capstone to his work thus far.

©2020 Martin J. Sherwin (P)2020 Random House Audio

Critic reviews

“A thrilling read.... This book takes us as close as we will ever get to the people whose judgments or insights determined the fate of 200 million people in a nuclear war.” (Thomas Leonard, professor of history of journalism and librarian, University of California, Berkeley, emeritus)

“A great achievement that should generate intense discussion not only about what now appears to be the dim past, but also about the kinds of people we now entrust our survival to.... I found myself (almost) wondering if the world would in fact be destroyed, and was quite relieved when the answer was no.... A remarkably good book in every way.” (Sanford Levinson, W. St. John Garwood and W. St. John Garwood, Jr. Centennial chair in law, University of Texas at Austin) 

“Evocative, compelling, interpretive...a tour de force. Sherwin makes the crisis so vivid. He clarifies beautifully what was happening meeting by meeting, what were the options, what were the ambiguities.... Far and away the best book on the crisis.” (Melvyn Leffler, Edward Stettinius professor of history emeritus, University of Virginia) 

Important History

The story is well told and heavily documented. The writing and performance generate considerable stress in the hearer which was likely at much higher levels in the historic characters.

I was shocked at the cavalier approach to nuclear war manifested by both military and civilian leadership. Politically I'm too the right of Atila the Hun but I have to give credit to JFK to keeping us out of war.

Luck? Or God’s Providence

A great read! I gained many insights into the history of the nuclear crises. The author credits luck (and says there is a dwindling supply of good luck in the world) for saving us from a general nuclear war. It could just as well be that God put John Kennedy in place for this moment and the “level-headed “ missile launch officer similarly, to avoid catastrophe. There is more to life than luck!

Don’t Underestimate the Power or Luck

A very fantastic book. I really enjoyed and appreciated the unbiased (in my opinion) content of this book. Hearing what happened in both the USSR and US shows that we aren’t that different and that no one wanted a war. The narrator is excellent and did not try to sound Russian when quoting Nikita Khrushchev, which I very much appreciated because that tends to take away from the seriousness of the content. This is an excellent book!

Consider this your lucky day.

A genuinely fascinating account of the Cuban Missile Crisis that skillfully shows how nuclear war was avoided only as a matter of luck.
What is most frightening is the degree to which much of Kennedy’s staff and all of the military thought attacking Cuba was the only response to the missiles. When UN Ambassador Stevenson first suggested diplomacy rather than military engagement he was viewed as completely unrealistic and yet that was the only response which saved us from annihilation.

A thorough telling

I found this to be a thorough telling of the Cubam Missile Crisis, told in the context of the first 17 years of nuclear decisions and the consequences of them. The Kruschev side, the close calls at sea, and seeing the mercurial nature of everyone's viewpoints throughout the Crisis are all fantastic.

A deep dig into our closest call with our demise

This is a good book for any history buff or those interested in diplomacy in action. The material is sometimes repetitious and each chapter is enumerated section by section providing a somewhat dry listen. But for anyone who seeks Thirteen Days with depth of detail, this surely delivers the goods. A worthy read.