Robert E. Quirk – författare

In April 1914 three minor incidents occurred in Mexico: the arrest of several American sailors, the detention of a mail courier, and the delay of an official Department of State dispatch. Less than two weeks later, United States military forces landed at Veracruz and remained to occupy it for more than six months. What were the causes underlying this action, and what was the United States trying to achieve? Robert Quirk examines the motives which led Woodrow Wilson to this decision, the reasons for its failure, and its consequences for the United States’ relations with Latin America.

Fidel Castro emerges as an ambitious rebel, from his earliest years into his student years and adulthood.In gripping detail, Quirk follows Castro as his first, failed attempt to bring down the regime of Fulgencio Batista is followed by the small-scale attacks from the Sierra Maestra mountains that culminate in the dictator's flight from Cuba in 1959 and Castro's sweep into power. The story provides a new account of Castro's relations with the United States and the Soviet Union, including the Bay of Pigs invasion and the 1962 Missile Crisis, and an analysis of the successes and failures of his regime to the present day.In its breadth and drama, Fidel Castro is more than the story of one ambitious man steering his nation on a dangerous and doomed course. It is also a parable of a small country caught up in the throes of international rivalries and world revolution.

Robert E. Quirk and his future wife, Marianne, were both Wayne State University students when they met and fell in love in 1941, but they were quickly parted when Quirk was drafted. Decades after their marriage and the end of the war, Quirk shares the letters they exchanged during World War II.The letters in "When You Come Home" paint a vivid picture of the couple's growing personal relationship alongside the politics of wartime, both overseas and on the home-front. As Quirk writes of combat in France and details reactions abroad to the bombing of Pearl Harbor, Marianne describes the impact of these events back in Detroit. "When You Come Home" also reveals personal glimpses of life in the 1940s, as the two exchange everyday stories about their families and the cities they live in and visit, about their studies at Wayne State, and about their jobs.Quirk's letters are presented along with commentary about his experiences at the time, giving the letters additional context and meaning. This volume also includes a foreword by former "Detroit Free Press" publisher Neal Shine.For readers curious about day-to-day life during World War II, "When You Come Home" will be a fascinating and personal glimpse into the time period.