Robert Smith Thompson teaches international relations at the University of South Carolina. He is the author of A Time for War: Franklin D. Roosevelt and the Path to Pearl Harbor, Empires on the Pacific: World War II and the Struggle for the Mastery of Asia, Pledge to Destiny: Charles de Gaulle and the Rise of the Free French, and The Missiles of October: The Declassified Story of John F. Kennedy and the Cuban Missile Crisis. He received his B.A. from Oberlin College, his M.A. from Harvard University, and his Ph.D. from the University of Michigan. Alan Axelrod, PhD, has written numerous books on history, business, and management topics. He's authored books on topics ranging the from the Civil War to the American Presidency, and on people ranging from Queen Elizabeth I to Harry Truman. He received his PhD in English from the University of Iowa, specializing in the literature and culture of colonial America. Previously, he taught at Furman University and Lake Forest College (IL), and has served as a consultant to a number of historical museums and cultural institutions.