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The Years of Lyndon Johnson #1-4
The Years of Lyndon Johnson Set: The Path to Power; Means of Ascent; Master of the Senate; The Passage of Power
The political biography of our time, now available in a four-volume hardcover set. Robert A. Caro's life of Lyndon Johnson is one of the richest, most intensive and most revealing examinations ever undertaken of an American president. It is the magnum opus of a writer perfectly suited to his the Pulitzer Prize-winning biographer-historian, chronicler also of Robert Moses in "The Power Broker," whose inspired research and profound understanding of the nature of ambition and the dynamics of power have made him a peerless explicator of political lives. "Taken together the installments of Mr. Caro's monumental life of Johnson . . . form a revealing prism by which to view the better part of a century in American life and politics during which the country experienced tumultuous and divisive social change. . .Gripping." --Michiko Kakutani, "The New York Times " "By writing the best presidential biography the country has ever seen, Caro has forever changed the way we think, and read, A
Hardcover
First published April 2, 2013
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About the author
Robert A. Caro
35 books2,931 followersRobert Allan Caro is an American journalist and author known for his biographies of United States political figures Robert Moses and Lyndon B. Johnson.
After working for many years as a reporter, Caro wrote The Power Broker (1974), a biography of New York urban planner Robert Moses, which was chosen by the Modern Library as one of the hundred greatest nonfiction books of the twentieth century. He has since written four of a planned five volumes of The Years of Lyndon Johnson (1982, 1990, 2002, 2012), a biography of the former president. Caro has been described as "the most influential biographer of the last century".
For his biographies, he has won two Pulitzer Prizes in Biography, two National Book Awards (including one for Lifetime Achievement), the Francis Parkman Prize (awarded by the Society of American Historians to the book that "best exemplifies the union of the historian and the artist"), three National Book Critics Circle Awards, the Mencken Award for Best Book, the Carr P. Collins Award from the Texas Institute of Letters, the D. B. Hardeman Prize, and a Gold Medal in Biography from the American Academy of Arts and Letters. In 2010 President Barack Obama awarded Caro the National Humanities Medal.
Due to Caro's reputation for exhaustive research and detail, he is sometimes invoked by reviewers of other writers who are called "Caro-esque" for their own extensive research.
After working for many years as a reporter, Caro wrote The Power Broker (1974), a biography of New York urban planner Robert Moses, which was chosen by the Modern Library as one of the hundred greatest nonfiction books of the twentieth century. He has since written four of a planned five volumes of The Years of Lyndon Johnson (1982, 1990, 2002, 2012), a biography of the former president. Caro has been described as "the most influential biographer of the last century".
For his biographies, he has won two Pulitzer Prizes in Biography, two National Book Awards (including one for Lifetime Achievement), the Francis Parkman Prize (awarded by the Society of American Historians to the book that "best exemplifies the union of the historian and the artist"), three National Book Critics Circle Awards, the Mencken Award for Best Book, the Carr P. Collins Award from the Texas Institute of Letters, the D. B. Hardeman Prize, and a Gold Medal in Biography from the American Academy of Arts and Letters. In 2010 President Barack Obama awarded Caro the National Humanities Medal.
Due to Caro's reputation for exhaustive research and detail, he is sometimes invoked by reviewers of other writers who are called "Caro-esque" for their own extensive research.
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Displaying 1 - 25 of 25 reviews
December 8, 2017
One of the great multivolume nonfiction histories/biographies ever. I read these during 2017, roughly one per quarter.
Here are my reviews:
1. The Path to Power (The Years of Lyndon Johnson, #1) - January 8, 2017
2. Means of Ascent (The Years of Lyndon Johnson, #2) - April 6, 2017
3. Master of the Senate (The Years of Lyndon Johnson, #3) - October 3, 2017
4. The Passage of Power (The Years of Lyndon Johnson, #4) - December 7, 2017
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March 15, 2021“Robert Caro’s epic multipart biography (not yet finished) of LBJ is also an analysis of power. Power, accumulated and wielded by deeply flawed individuals, has shaped the American experiment over the past century—for better and for worse.”— Katherine Wells, executive producer, "The Experiment"
https://www.theatlantic.com/books/arc...
https://www.theatlantic.com/books/arc...
April 16, 2013
Easily one of the greatest biographies ever, and about a very interesting character. LBJ was one of the most influential US presidents, but rarely is credited for it.
February 3, 2021
Listened to the whole set on audiobook, narrated by Grover Gardner, what a ride. Like most other fans of Caro's, I can only hope that he finishes the fifth and final volume sooner than later.
The life of LBJ continues to be shockingly relevant to the world of American politics, as many of the patterns we see today can be traced to his rise. A complicated man, he cheated, lied, and manipulated voters, his colleagues and the political process on his way to the Presidency, where he simultaneously enacted real, positive social change in civil rights (the likes of which has not been seen since), but also decimated public trust in our institutions. Caro uses that background to frame the story of an flawed man who nevertheless possesses many virtues, and he paints a picture of power in the United States (in particular the Senate) that I have never before seen on this scale.
Intimidating to start, but a wildly powerful read for anybody with even an inkling of interest in the American political system.
The life of LBJ continues to be shockingly relevant to the world of American politics, as many of the patterns we see today can be traced to his rise. A complicated man, he cheated, lied, and manipulated voters, his colleagues and the political process on his way to the Presidency, where he simultaneously enacted real, positive social change in civil rights (the likes of which has not been seen since), but also decimated public trust in our institutions. Caro uses that background to frame the story of an flawed man who nevertheless possesses many virtues, and he paints a picture of power in the United States (in particular the Senate) that I have never before seen on this scale.
Intimidating to start, but a wildly powerful read for anybody with even an inkling of interest in the American political system.
October 6, 2024
Well it took me the entire summer but I finally finished reading Robert Caro’s four (each very voluminous) volumes constituting the life of Lyndon Johnson. The first volume takes us up to his ascent from the House of Representatives to the Second World War. The second volume takes us through the 1948 election to the Senate, which is widely regarded as having been stolen. The next volume (3 volumes on Audible) describes in stultifying detail his work in the Senate. The last volume takes us through his vice presidency. All in all we come to understand that Johnson HAD to lead, and by any means necessary. When he couldn’t lead, for example in his short time as vice president, he was coiled up like a genie in a bottle. At many points in his life he was vulgar to the point of being disgusting, cruel, dishonest, manipulative sadistic, mendacious, ridiculous. At other times, when it did not interfere with his over weening ambition, he looked out for the little guy. He himself had been a “poor boy” who understood hunger, deprivation, and humiliation following his father’s disastrous business decisions. His primary motivation in life seems to have been not to be like his father.
The last volume of this work was published in 2012. There is yet one volume—on the full presidency of Lyndon Johnson—yet to be published. Problem is Robert Caro is now 88 years old and his ever patient editor Robert Gottleib has died. One can only hope that the final volume will appear before we lose Caro.
This work is obviously intended mainly to chronicle Johnson’s rise to leadership and to be the definitive historical record. My one criticism of this monumental work is that it contains ridiculously little about his adult personal or family life, except for his public humiliation of his wife. We learn little if anything about his relationship with his two daughters. He was a known womanizer yet there is nothing in these volumes about any of that except for the two serious adulterous affairs he had. I think a person’s psycho sexual attitudes and activities are important in understanding the person but there is zero/zilch discussion of that. When asked why he had not included discussion of Johnsons’s predatory behavior with women, Caro said, in sum and substance, that he wanted to focus of politics and power. In this respect Caro’s work is very dated, completely devoid of understanding of the relationship between patriarchy, predation of women and power. Johnson only wanted attractive women around. He told his secretaries to lose weight, do their hair differently, etc. He reportedly had sex with many of the attractive women around him. He bragged that he had had sex without even trying with more women than Kennedy had had. These facts I learned not from Caro but from other reliable sources. There were apparently no consequences for Johnson’s outrageous behavior. This was all before the me-too movement. It says a lot about Johnson that he felt free to try to have sex with so many of the women in his orbit, that he thought nothing of whipping out his penis and calling it “Jumbo,” peeing in public, that he insisted on conferring with colleagues while sitting on the toilet, and swimming with them naked in the White House pool whether they liked it or not. These acts were all assertions of power.
In addition, the volumes are dated in that all people, certainly all people with any power, are constantly and collectively referred to as “men.” It’s jarring in the 21st Century. Then again pretty much all powerful people of LBJ’s time were in fact men. Creepy. Personally, as a woman old enough to remember such times, it was quite a discomfiting and unpleasant reminder of those times not all that long ago when I was coming of age.
The last volume of this work was published in 2012. There is yet one volume—on the full presidency of Lyndon Johnson—yet to be published. Problem is Robert Caro is now 88 years old and his ever patient editor Robert Gottleib has died. One can only hope that the final volume will appear before we lose Caro.
This work is obviously intended mainly to chronicle Johnson’s rise to leadership and to be the definitive historical record. My one criticism of this monumental work is that it contains ridiculously little about his adult personal or family life, except for his public humiliation of his wife. We learn little if anything about his relationship with his two daughters. He was a known womanizer yet there is nothing in these volumes about any of that except for the two serious adulterous affairs he had. I think a person’s psycho sexual attitudes and activities are important in understanding the person but there is zero/zilch discussion of that. When asked why he had not included discussion of Johnsons’s predatory behavior with women, Caro said, in sum and substance, that he wanted to focus of politics and power. In this respect Caro’s work is very dated, completely devoid of understanding of the relationship between patriarchy, predation of women and power. Johnson only wanted attractive women around. He told his secretaries to lose weight, do their hair differently, etc. He reportedly had sex with many of the attractive women around him. He bragged that he had had sex without even trying with more women than Kennedy had had. These facts I learned not from Caro but from other reliable sources. There were apparently no consequences for Johnson’s outrageous behavior. This was all before the me-too movement. It says a lot about Johnson that he felt free to try to have sex with so many of the women in his orbit, that he thought nothing of whipping out his penis and calling it “Jumbo,” peeing in public, that he insisted on conferring with colleagues while sitting on the toilet, and swimming with them naked in the White House pool whether they liked it or not. These acts were all assertions of power.
In addition, the volumes are dated in that all people, certainly all people with any power, are constantly and collectively referred to as “men.” It’s jarring in the 21st Century. Then again pretty much all powerful people of LBJ’s time were in fact men. Creepy. Personally, as a woman old enough to remember such times, it was quite a discomfiting and unpleasant reminder of those times not all that long ago when I was coming of age.
January 2, 2022
This is a set of the first 4 books in Robert Caro's 5 book (at least) biography of Lyndon Johnson:
The Path To Power
This is an interesting, if depressing book, especially if you came into this series of books with a generally positive view of Lyndon Johnson.
When he started this book, Caro intended the series to be 3 books, Johnson from birth to his first electoral loss (this book), Johnson in the senate, and Johnson as president. As I'm sure people know now, it has morphed into a (probable) 5 book series, though this book still covers Johnson's life up to his first electoral loss.
If you're expecting it to be a straight biography of Lyndon Johnson's life and his family, you'd be right and wrong, for while the book looks at Johnson's life and family, it strays, interestingly, from what you'd expect from a typical biography. It looks at the Texas Johnson grew up in generally for example, and gives us considerable detail about the characters that inhabit Texas' political landscape at the time.
Where I got depressed by the book was in its' portrayal of Johnson. I understand politicians have to be ruthless, and show a certain "low cunning" if they want to achieve anything in life, but the Johnson shown here takes ruthlessness and low cunning to a whole new level, and I find it hard to contrast that with what he would later achieve with the War on Poverty, and the Great Society.
Means Of Ascent:
Means of Ascent is the second book in the series about Lyndon Johnson, and America (with a special focus on the South), during his life. This book picks up where the first book finishes. He has just lost his first senate race (that he almost certainly won), and focuses on the period between this loss, and his subsequent successful campaign for the Senate in 1948 (that he almost certainly lost). In short, it covers the period when Johnson was a congressman just before, during, and after, World War 2, and his
This book was a depressing book. Much of the book looks at how Johnson won his 1948 Senate race. As someone who is instinctively pro-Johnson's achievements, his behaviour in the race can, at best, be described as distasteful, and certainly left me thinking considerably less of him.
This said, if you want to understand American politics in the 1940s and 1950s, this is the book for you. It is a really interesting read.
Master of the Senate
This is a strange book. From the title, you might think that this book is about Lyndon Johnson's life in the Senate. It is, but it's about much more than that. It explains clearly how the Senate works, how Johnson changed it, and the impact of those changes on it at the time, and, in the future.
The author also interweaves the life of other senators, and Johnson's "back story", into the story, to give you a greater sense of the place and Johnson's impact on it.
The result is that in turn, you'll get infuriated, and really impressed with the place (and Johnson), as you read the book. It is a really impressive, and informative, read.
The Passage Of Power
This is the fourth book in a probably five book series about Lyndon Johnson's life (and America in his lifetime). While this was still a very good book, I'm not sure that this was the greatest book in the series.
My problem with the book focuses on the time covered. It basically covers the time from Johnson's decision to sort of run for the Presidential nomination in 1960 (against JFK) to the time 100 days after Kennedy was shot when Johnson had guided the heart of the Kennedy program through congress.
It isn't a bad book, but my grumble is the length of time he spends on the last 100 days. Approximately 350 or so are spent on those 100 days (which works out at 3.5 a day). The result was, interesting, but a little repetitive.
Let me stress though, the book is still good. If you want to find out how Johnson was treated by the Kennedys, and how he managed to guide Kennedy's program through, this is the book for you.
My one grumble would be that the packaging was a little... underwhelming, but that shouldn't be surprising as the series hasn't been finished yet
The Path To Power
This is an interesting, if depressing book, especially if you came into this series of books with a generally positive view of Lyndon Johnson.
When he started this book, Caro intended the series to be 3 books, Johnson from birth to his first electoral loss (this book), Johnson in the senate, and Johnson as president. As I'm sure people know now, it has morphed into a (probable) 5 book series, though this book still covers Johnson's life up to his first electoral loss.
If you're expecting it to be a straight biography of Lyndon Johnson's life and his family, you'd be right and wrong, for while the book looks at Johnson's life and family, it strays, interestingly, from what you'd expect from a typical biography. It looks at the Texas Johnson grew up in generally for example, and gives us considerable detail about the characters that inhabit Texas' political landscape at the time.
Where I got depressed by the book was in its' portrayal of Johnson. I understand politicians have to be ruthless, and show a certain "low cunning" if they want to achieve anything in life, but the Johnson shown here takes ruthlessness and low cunning to a whole new level, and I find it hard to contrast that with what he would later achieve with the War on Poverty, and the Great Society.
Means Of Ascent:
Means of Ascent is the second book in the series about Lyndon Johnson, and America (with a special focus on the South), during his life. This book picks up where the first book finishes. He has just lost his first senate race (that he almost certainly won), and focuses on the period between this loss, and his subsequent successful campaign for the Senate in 1948 (that he almost certainly lost). In short, it covers the period when Johnson was a congressman just before, during, and after, World War 2, and his
This book was a depressing book. Much of the book looks at how Johnson won his 1948 Senate race. As someone who is instinctively pro-Johnson's achievements, his behaviour in the race can, at best, be described as distasteful, and certainly left me thinking considerably less of him.
This said, if you want to understand American politics in the 1940s and 1950s, this is the book for you. It is a really interesting read.
Master of the Senate
This is a strange book. From the title, you might think that this book is about Lyndon Johnson's life in the Senate. It is, but it's about much more than that. It explains clearly how the Senate works, how Johnson changed it, and the impact of those changes on it at the time, and, in the future.
The author also interweaves the life of other senators, and Johnson's "back story", into the story, to give you a greater sense of the place and Johnson's impact on it.
The result is that in turn, you'll get infuriated, and really impressed with the place (and Johnson), as you read the book. It is a really impressive, and informative, read.
The Passage Of Power
This is the fourth book in a probably five book series about Lyndon Johnson's life (and America in his lifetime). While this was still a very good book, I'm not sure that this was the greatest book in the series.
My problem with the book focuses on the time covered. It basically covers the time from Johnson's decision to sort of run for the Presidential nomination in 1960 (against JFK) to the time 100 days after Kennedy was shot when Johnson had guided the heart of the Kennedy program through congress.
It isn't a bad book, but my grumble is the length of time he spends on the last 100 days. Approximately 350 or so are spent on those 100 days (which works out at 3.5 a day). The result was, interesting, but a little repetitive.
Let me stress though, the book is still good. If you want to find out how Johnson was treated by the Kennedys, and how he managed to guide Kennedy's program through, this is the book for you.
My one grumble would be that the packaging was a little... underwhelming, but that shouldn't be surprising as the series hasn't been finished yet
June 28, 2025
This is a magnificent biography of LBJ. It is very insightful and one of the best features is the background given during each phase of the story. This gives the story context and the reader greater understanding of the story being told. It should be heartily recommended to anyone seeking a deeper knowledge of this President--no matter what your political leanings.
I wondered how so many books could be written about one man but as I get deep into the first volume of this set I find it covers much more. Coverage extends to ancestors, history of the land and settlement, prominent people, and the times...socially, geographically, economically, and politically. The work is extremely well researched and is far more fascinating than fiction.
Truly, history that lives.
I wondered how so many books could be written about one man but as I get deep into the first volume of this set I find it covers much more. Coverage extends to ancestors, history of the land and settlement, prominent people, and the times...socially, geographically, economically, and politically. The work is extremely well researched and is far more fascinating than fiction.
Truly, history that lives.
February 11, 2020
The Passage of Power: describes events - public and behind the scenes - from 1960-1964 in LBJ's ultimate passage to the presidency. Details the distrust and power struggles between Johnson and the Kennedy juggernaut. Caro's documentation is impeccable, though I skimmed through some passages because it was a bit iterative for me. I actually read this book to cue up for what I thought would be the next one: LBJ's second term and understanding the import of the Civil Rights Act and the cover-ups of the Viet Nam conflict in their own time. Alas, this was the last book in the series.
May 28, 2022
I read this during 2020, and it was astounding how history rhymes. Master of the Senate was very helpful to my better understanding how the Senate works--and sadly how it doesn't anymore. Well worth the time. I listened to all these, but we also had the hardcovers so I did get the chance to look at the photographs.
I can't recommend this enough.
I can't recommend this enough.
April 10, 2023
Volume four of the five volume LBJ biography...I don't know how Robert Caro researches and writes so well. His description of the JFK assassination (which I lived through) is heartbreaking in its accuracy. How LBJ become president in more than just words in a few days in an amazing story. Caro's detail of how to use power should be required reading for all politicians.
September 9, 2019
Great beginning history on one of the most important political figures from central Texas. I'm looking forward to the next book.
November 2, 2022
Tough one to stay with...but finally completed ..Not as interesting as the previous volumes
bailed
May 10, 2023Why did I bail? I just can't with politics now.
August 23, 2023
I spent about a year listening to these first four volumes in audio format and I can't wait for volume five! What a fascinating portrait of a man and a time period and a glimpse into his world!
June 11, 2024
Not bad
November 18, 2024
It's probably the greatest biography ever written. It's hard to imagine that another could be better. Caro's research is exhaustive. His writing style is readable and elegant. Caro is a riveting storyteller. The only person from the Johnson Administration who hasn't been interviewed is Bill Moyers, who has refused an interview to Caro. (The reason for refusal is unknown, but Moyers was the publisher at Newsday shortly after Caro left Newsday to continue work on his bio of Robert Moses.) For The Power Broker Caro tracked down and interviewed every one of the hundreds of people who were displaced by a Moses highway. Similarly, Caro provides a detailed panorama of Texas and the Hill Country and what life was like for Americans before the New Deal and Civil Rights Act. Caro also provides impressive mini-biographies of dozens of individuals who were key figures in LBJ's life, including Richard Russell, Sam Rayburn, JFK, Hubert Humphrey, and many other lesser known figures who influenced or were affected by LBJ.
December 21, 2013
I found this book to be extremely enlightening. Robert Caro is an incredible writer, filling his sentences with a huge amount of almost parenthetical phrases that made it n intellectual challenge to decipher each sentence! I learned a lot about government which made me dislike politics even more. The timing of my reading was quite poignant too - I read it at the same time as the 50th annivesary of JFK's assassination and to be able to see if from LBJ's point of view was exciting.
August 7, 2014
Robert Caro has made Lyndon Johnson his life's work; what a life and what work it is. There is so little more to be said about Caro's research, insight, the sweep of this narrative that all I'll say is, read it. All 4 books. Each is brilliant and the whole is dazzling.
Read
December 19, 2014I read Passage of Power and Means of Ascent, excellent
Want to read
August 22, 2014Doris
September 30, 2014
amazing book on the politic genius
November 11, 2014
Really good
March 24, 2017
Among the most important books I've ever read.
Caro is a master at grasping, unraveling, and explaining the complexities of the monumental people, and challenges, of American history.
I'm left with a profound sense of appreciation for the sacrifices of the many men and women who dedicated their lives to social justice.
I'm also left reconciling aspects of who LBJ was, what he did to people, and what he did for America; its like seeing a square peg in a round hole and wondering how it got there.
Caro is a master at grasping, unraveling, and explaining the complexities of the monumental people, and challenges, of American history.
I'm left with a profound sense of appreciation for the sacrifices of the many men and women who dedicated their lives to social justice.
I'm also left reconciling aspects of who LBJ was, what he did to people, and what he did for America; its like seeing a square peg in a round hole and wondering how it got there.
Want to read
December 17, 2018When asked about suggestions on historical reads by Alex Lawson.
"The first few chapters give a fascinating history of our country and the roll of the Senate." ~ Ernie Powell
"The first few chapters give a fascinating history of our country and the roll of the Senate." ~ Ernie Powell
Displaying 1 - 25 of 25 reviews