'Sons Of Camelot'

For a long time, the Kennedy family has been a source of fascination for many Americans, generating a veritable library of books, including three by Laurence Leamer.

His latest work, "Sons of Camelot: The Fate of an American Dynasty," largely focuses on the triumph and tragedy of the younger generation of Kennedy men.

Unlike other books about the famous family, Leamer says this one is an insider's book.

"They finally decided it's time to tell the truth. They aren't afraid of it," Leamer tells The Early Show co-anchor Hannah Storm about the Kennedy family. "There have been so many things that have been wrong and false and really salacious about them. They told the negative. They told the positive. It's all in this book."

A "Kennedy curse" is how many account for the disproportionate amount of tragedy they have faced: Starting with the assassination of John Kennedy, followed a few years later with the shooting of brother Robert; the car accident at Chappaquidick, in which a young woman was killed; the drug overdose of David; skiing death of Michael; and plane crash of John Jr. The family has unarguably been through a lot and Leamer describes it in his book with compassion.

He says, "I think of the pressures that were on them. If less had been expected, more would have become. Think of the pressure, which became greater and greater. Wherever they went, they didn't treat them as human beings. They treated them as Kennedys. They had to overcome that."

Senator Ted Kennedy, for example, has endured a lot of tragedy and yet remains a strong political figure. The reason Leamer says is "because no matter what, no matter how much he had to drink, he's up early in the morning. He gets that briefcase full of papers and works on it every night. Who does President Bush invite to the White House first? He invites Ted Kennedy. Who does his father last year give the award for distinguished public service? Ted Kennedy. We realize the contributions he has made."

The book highlights how the Kennedy men have had to overcome adversity and how, as middle-aged men, have been able to accomplish good things for others.

The Shrivers are the only ones, he says, who have managed to stay intact as a family. "They had a loving mother and father. The others didn't have it, Either they died tragically or divorced or died," Leamer says and lists their accomplishments: "Bobby Shriver has raised $70 million for Special Olympics. He and Bono have given billions of dollars of debt relief for Africa. Tim Shriver, the head of Special Olympics, made it truly an international organization. Mark Shriver -- all the good he has done with his organization, Anthony with Best Buddies, and that is just one family," he says.

And Leamer has great hopes for the next generation. He notes, "The great thing about the next generation is they're going to go out there and their achievements are going to be their own. They aren't going to say it's just a Kennedy, a sense of entitlement."

Read an excerpt from Chapter One. And hear more from Leamer and from members of the Kennedy family as they share their memories next Tuesday night on a special edition of at 10:00 p.m./ET 9:00 p.m./Central on CBS.