1962年的四月，甘迺迪总统及总统夫人邀请了49名诺贝尔奖得主—其中许多知名的科学家、艺术家及作家—来到白宫晚餐。其中的贵宾包括“原子彈之父”J. Robert Oppenheimer、美國化學家，量子化學和結構生物學的先鋒之一的Linus Pauling、小说家William Styron、诗人作家James Baldwin、海明威的孀妇Mary Welsh Hemingway（她就坐在总统旁边，整晚质疑总统的古巴政策）、第一位進入地球軌道的美國太空人John Glenn、历史学家Arther M. Schlesinger, Jr.、演员Frederic March等人。当时是冷战的最高峰，这场晚宴代表了一个知识分子被尊敬的时代，他们能在一个同样的场合交换理念、文明的反对意见。
好评：
A fascinating entry point to the cultural and academic environments of the 1960s. . . . Esposito presents a book that makes us wonder what the world could have been and that allows us to dream, at least for 200 pages.
—Kirkus Reviews
Esposito’s approach captures all of that remarkable evening’s many dimensions, reading like a melding of American Heritage, Architectural Digest, and Gourmet, along with a national newspaper’s page 1 above the fold and society pages.
—National Book Review
A fascinating look back at a time when intellect and culture were respected in the inner sancta of American power.
—Publishers Weekly
A delightful, detailed account of the dinner, its background, its repercussions and its lasting meaning. . . . Esposito brings a solid blend of intellectual and writing background to his task. He has taught history, written it and lived it in three administrations. The book is a largely skillful mix of diligently researched detail and chatty anecdotes, all woven together without excessively florid Camelot rhetoric.
—Washington Post
Dinner in Camelot is a wonderful recounting of the greatest party of the 1960s. A real page-turner. Highly recommended!
—Douglas Brinkley, CNN presidential historian and author of Rightful Heritage: Franklin D. Roosevelt and the Land of America
关于作者：
JOSEPH A. ESPOSITO has had a long career in the fields of public service, education, communications, and nonprofit work. He served in three presidential administrations, most recently as deputy undersecretary for international affairs at the U.S. Department of Education. He is currently an adjunct professor at Northern Virginia Community College. He blogs about history at www.josephaesposito.com.