by Mark K. Shriver (Get the Book)Shriver, founder of the Peace Corps, had by the time of his death at 95 in 2011 earned a sound reputation as a good man. Now his son explores the man behind what has come to be an overused and not always deserved description, portraying someone who was not just kind and principled on a public stage but also in everyday interactions with family, friends, and neighbors. Shriver wrote his son a letter nearly every day of his adult life, which the son ignored in the hustle and bustle of life. Drawing on those letters and others, including one written in anticipation of Shriver's death, Mark offers an intimate portrait of an ambitious man whose drive was more spiritual than political, a man of great personal stature operating in the shadow of a powerful political family. Mark recalls childhood in a hyperactive household, with hard-charging adults, the trauma of the Kennedy assassinations, and the steadfast guidance of his father. Mark, founder of Save Our Children, watched his father struggle with Alzheimer's in his later years and yet maintain the riddle of his joy. --Booklist
