Kai Bird is the co-author or author of four previous books: American Prometheus: The Triumph and Tragedy of J. Robert Oppenheimer, Crossing Mandelbaum Gate: Coming of Age Between the Arabs and Israelis, 1956-1978, The Chairman, and The Color of Truth: McGeorge Bundy and William Bundy: Brothers in Arms. He is a recipient of a Guggenheim Fellowship and a MacArthur Writing Fellowship.