It is impossible to write about Robert Kennedy in adult life without writing about his brother, John Kennedy. Hilty does a very thorough job of portraying Robert Kennedy, the dedicated, hard working, determined brother, warts in all in a fair and impartial way. Throughout this book, one sees the "metamorphosis" of Robert Kennedy. He is the man who works behind the scenes, protecting his brother's interests to his maximum extent. He is the man who pushes his brother forward while sublimating his own interests, needs and identity. It is only in the tragic aftermath of the President's death does Robert Kennedy, in full adult form emerge -- the man who immersed himself in classical literature, the man who became a personal crusader for civil rights related issues, the man who made it his business to know minorities and persons living in poverty. It is during the last nearly half-decade of his life that the full face of Robert Kennedy is shown to his constituents -- the man who doggedly pursued Teamsters and Mafiosi in the 1950s takes that same dogged persistence to the political arena where he runs on his own right. He is a voice for the disenfranchised, a voice for those who share his vision. He was a man who provided hope during a very turbulent period in history marked by war and national violence. It is the opinion of this reviewer that Robert Kennedy is certainly the more interesting of the brothers. His personal, political and personality development is very interesting to watch and track. He was certainly a man who came across as very sincere in his efforts and one cannot help wondering what the outcome today would be had this man lived.

This is a book well worth reading.

James Hilty brings to life the force behind the Kennedy Presidency -- Robert Kennedy. Hilty states "That we speak at all of a Kennedy Legacy...is because of Robert Kennedy...That we connect the Kennedy name to issues of social justice and equity is also the result of RFK's work after the death of (JFK)." Dispelling the American Myth of Kennedy "deity," while focusing on the Kennedys as human beings and, above all, politicians, Hilty eloquently takes the reader back into the Kennedy era, conveying the story as it occured...with RFK functioning in many circumstances as a "co-president." RFK served as a "brother protector" to JFK, as the older brother's campaign manager as well as guardian of JFK's presidency. Called "number one and half" by some presidential insiders, Robert Kennedy was consulted by the president on virtually every issue of monumental importance. Access to the president often had to first pass the younger brother. Hilty further portrays RFK as a good person who had become "champion of the outcasts, the Jeremiah of the sixties." It was the younger Kennedy who pushed and advanced civil rights. *Brother Protector* takes the readers to RFK's life just past his brother's assasination, leaving them anxious for the second volume of this innovative, capturing historical account of one of the most intriguing statesmen in US History.

Professor Hilty provides an excellent study and examination of Bobby Kennedy. Though this is an enormously hefty read. For those new to Bobby Kennedy, a more manageable introduction might be a rather recent book called Robert F. Kennedy: A Spiritual Biography by Konstantine Sidorenko. Though in contrast to Hilty's (brilliant but somewhat unwieldy) tome, this slim short form biography covers Kennedy and his life in great depth and the book's brevity will not disappoint serious biography readers. It is particularly an excellent book to take up before plunging in to Hilty's.