The Fourth K

The Fourth K, written by Mario Puzo and published in 1990, is a novel set during the fictional Presidency of Francis Xavier Kennedy, a nephew of John F. Kennedy, Robert Kennedy and Edward Kennedy.

Related Topics:
Mario Puzo - John F. Kennedy - Robert Kennedy - Edward Kennedy

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The novel begins with a world-weary President who has decided not to run for a second term of office as his personal agenda was picked apart by Congress, Lobbyists and the ominous Socrates Group who are made up of the richest and most influential men in America. The assassination of the Pope on Good Friday, the kidnap and subsequent murder of his daughter on Easter Sunday and the discovery of a nuclear device in the heart of Manhattan shocked the administration into action and suddenly Francis Kennedy finds himself isolated by his opponents who question his capability to act.

Related Topics:
America - Pope - Good Friday - Easter Sunday - Nuclear - Manhattan

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Once the crisis has passed, the President vows to change the face of American politics forever, proposing a radical left-wing economic agenda but with very right-wing methods of governance. The novel details Kennedy?s re-election campaign and his fight for his vision of the future.

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The emphasis of the novel is on the characters. The reader learns about the background of that character when he/she has to make a major decision. Critics have stated that once the book has focussed on one particular character, he/she is relegated to the background and never again returns to prominance.

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Mario Puzo said of the Fourth K: ?The Fourth K was a failure - but it was my most ambitious book."

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