Robert Caro’s Lyndon Johnson series has always been honest about what it is.
Ostensibly, this is true about every biography. A book about the life of Amelia Earhart should be just that. Only, every biographer, no matter how well-intentioned, objective, clear-eyed or distant brings with them an angle. Perhaps a person was under appreciated in their time. Maybe they were overrated by the laudations of historical standard. Possibly they had a hidden back story that impacted their life.
Caro has been clear that these books are about one angle to Johnson’s life and one only: the acquisition of and use of political power.
Every person is a contradiction but Johnson really embodies it. A racist with a deep compassion and empathy for Black and Brown folk. A folksy southern Democrat who worked to ram through the first major civil rights legislation since the abolition of slavery. A kind and caring man who was vengeful with his enemies, mean to his staff and abusive (at least verbally and perhaps physically) towards his wife.
And yet, all of those things make Johnson’s uniquely American tale from dusty Texas nowhere land to the highest office in the country fascinating.
Three-and-a-half books in and Johnson is still pursuing power. He comes up short the first half of this one but makes it the second. And it’s clear he intends to use it for good (civil rights, anti-poverty) and bad (Vietnam).
I loved this book as I’ve loved all books in this series, however, I must confess some surprise that this is the one that wound up on the Times‘ Best 100 of the Century so far and not its predecessor. Master of the Senate is longer and yet doesn’t waste a word. It is, by my estimation, the best book ever written about politics in these United States. The Passage of Power is still Caro, still great but I felt like there was space here that Caro was too obsessed with, like Johnson’s private business dealings and RFK’s long slump after his brother’s death. Interesting tales in their own right but took away from the otherwise vise-tight narrative that Caro has often presented.
Still. I have no problem with this being on the list. It’s excellent. And I can’t wait for the concluding fifth volume.