The best books about the JFK assassination – from James Ellroy to Norman Mailer

The US government began releasing the final cache of classified papers on president John F. Kennedy’s death last week. It could lead to even more books being written about the incident

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Nearly 3,000 previously classified files relating to the assassination of John F. Kennedy in Dallas in November, 1963, were released last Thursday. Photo: AP

Published: 8:03pm, 30 Oct 2017Updated: 8:02pm, 30 Oct 2017

If Lee Harvey Oswald was the sole figure involved in the assassination of President John F. Kennedy (and hundreds of books have argued that he wasn’t), then he presumably fired his rifle from the Texas School Book Depository, because of the line of sight it provided on the route of the presidential motorcade through Dallas, Texas, that November day in 1963.

The choice of a warehouse containing educational texts has proved prophetic. When Oswald fired, he unleashed a towering stack of books arguing about the events of that day.

Zapruder captured JFK’s assassination in chilling detail. It brought him ‘nothing but heartbreak’

US President Donald Trump may hope that his order to publish the last trove of classified government documents will finally silence the literature of JFK-speculation. In fact, history suggests that the new wave of paperwork will provoke another rush of publications, or revisions to existing ones.

Nearly 3,000 previously classified files relating to the assassination of Kennedy were released on Thursday, and had more to say about the aftermath of his death.

They revealed that the FBI had warned Dallas police about a threat to kill Oswald, and claimed that Soviet officials feared an “irresponsible” US general could launch a missile strike in the wake of the crisis.

The newly released documents had more to say about the aftermath of Kennedy’s death. Photo: The Washington Post