Play Book Tag discussion

I have been reading this book since the beginning of the year. I was a teenager during Vietnam and LBJ was the first President I really paid attention to. He was such a devisive man. He was a womanizer, a bully, close to indictment on several occasions and his mistakes in Viet Nam were legendary.

The Path to Power only covers the initial 33 years of Johnson’s life (1908-1941), and it ends with his defeat in an election for the U.S. Senate from Texas, one he had been certain to win, and then with the derailing of his plans by World War II. Caro begins with Johnson’s early family life and the social backdrop of Texas and Texas politics. Caro is always attentive to the influences and contacts that furthered Johnson’s journey to the Presidency

After exploring and analyzing Johnson’s childhood and his family in careful detail, the next significant period that Caro moves into is the Depression Era. In this section of the book the author is thoughtful in his examination of how this significant period of American history affected Johnson.

Caro maintains a sharp focus on the events and people that influenced the future president, while at the same time examining how Johnson leveraged those experiences and contacts for his own advancement. Like his ancestors, Johnson is portrayed by Caro as a formidable figure, blessed with an almost genetic tendency for physical and intellectual prowess that makes public life a natural vocation.

It's impossible not to appreciate the breadth and scope of Caro's research. I was amazed by the detail that Caro included and the stories he was able to incorporate, shedding both positive and negative lights on LBJ.

I'm not sorry I read this book because it gave me a different view on my teenage impression of him. Currently, I don't have plans to read more of this multi volume massive biography of LBJ, but if I did, it would be the one that demonstrated how Johnson became one of the most powerful forces ever to run the U.S. Senate rather than a very unpopular President.

Glad to see your review! I own a copy of this book but have not had a chance to read it yet. I read a Caro book on writing recently, and it spoke of Caro's desire to portray Johnson as a person "who made the Senate work" and was able to get participants to think beyond party-lines.