Name: Keven Wang's review of Master of the Senate by Robert A. Caro
Item: Master of the Senate
Rating: 5
Author: Keven Wang

Robert A. Caro

Describes the future president's career in the U.S. Senate, from breaking the southern control of Capitol Hill to passing the first civil rights legislation since Reconstruction.

Master of the Senate

Benjamin Erwin

Keven Wang

Probably one of my favorite volume. Brilliant history on the senate

Melody Izard

So much of this book is about Johnson's tricks in the Senate to get whatever bill through that worked best for his career. That can get mighty tedious. Suddenly it dawned on my. My God - Frank from house of cards must be based on LBJ! Googled and confirmed!

The timeline and description of the events leading up to the passage of the civil rights legislation is one of the best I've ever seen. So much cruelty it is hard to imagine. Not much different from times of slavery if you ask me. Maybe worse.

And damn if Caro is not writing a fifth book on LBJ! I have the fourth book as an audio book to listen to. I thought that would be the last - but I hear nope, there will be more.

Jeremy Anderberg

While Caro's entire four-volume series on LBJ is widely acclaimed, it's this third volume that tends to get the most attention, and for good reason. It was published in 2002, and won Caro a Pulitzer, National Book Award, and plenty more hardware. With over 1,000 pages of text (and a couple hundred more of notes) which covers a period of just over 10 years, it wasn't a quick or even easy read, but it was sure enthralling.

The best biographers will not only convey a great narrative, but also delve deeply into their subject's psyche. Caro is a master of this and posits that not only does power corrupt, as the saying goes, it also reveals. So what did the power of the Senate reveal in Lyndon Johnson? First and foremost, it showed a deep insecurity and need for power as well as admiration, but it also showed a deep drive for getting things done. Lyndon oversaw a period of productiveness, in terms of sheer legislation passed, that isn't much rivaled in the annals of Congress.

Most importantly, Johnson, a Texas southerner, pushed through the Civil Rights Act of 1957. While not actually accomplishing much in reality, it was an incredibly important symbol for the cause; it was the first Civil Rights legislation passed since Reconstruction (the period following the Civil War). Caro, in fact, wrote that LBJ was the greatest advocate for African-American citizens since Lincoln. Quite a statement.

While the first two volumes of the series were skewed very negatively towards LBJ, this volume proved more balanced and nuanced. Caro expertly showed the complexities of Johnson's motivations. Yes, he had a volcanic temper and used people like statues on a chess board, but he did also care about enacting real change for underserved people.

If the whole series is too intimidating a task (which I totally get), this is one that can be read on its own. It offers plenty of recap material from volumes one and two, and while you won't get the whole picture, you'll get the most salient pieces.

I'm not sure I need to really state it this clearly, but Master of the Senate is a monumental achievement.

Benjamin Erwin &
Master of the Senate by Robert A. Caro

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Benjamin Erwin &Master of the Senate by Robert A. Caro

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Join the club

Benjamin Erwin &
Master of the Senate by Robert A. Caro