Means of Ascent (The Years of Lyndon Johnson, Vol 2)
by Robert A. Caro
Reprint Edition
Paperback, 522 pages
Published by Vintage Books
Publication date: March 1, 1991
Dimensions (in inches): 9.24 x 6.16 x
1.22
ISBN: 067973371X
Reviews and Commentary for Means of Ascent (The Years of Lyndon Johnson, Vol 2)
Amazon.com:
The second installment in a projected four-volume biography of LBJ that opened with The Path to Power, Means of Ascent shines a harsh light on the early political years of one of America's most paradoxical presidents. The man who would later ram civil rights legislation through a reluctant Congress, and then be brought down by Vietnam, came out of a political swamp--Caro gives a graphic picture of the Texas democratic political machine at its most corrupt. The climax of the book is LBJ's election to the Senate in 1948, an election he won by 87 dubious votes out of almost a million. That vote arguably changed history. This book won the 1990 National Book Critics Circle Award for Biography.
New York Times Book Review, Ronald Steel :an immensely engrossing and deeply disturbing tale . . . Mr. Caro is an indefatigable investigative reporterand a skillful historian who can make the most abstract material . . . come vibrantly to life.
Synopsis:
The most important, acclaimed, and galvanizing political biography of our era--which began with The Path to Power--continues in this national bestseller. In Means of Ascent Lyndon Johnson's almost mythic personality is seen at its most nakedly ambitious. The culminating drama--the explosive heart of the book--is Caro's illumination of one of the great political mysteries of the century, the "87 votes that
changed history."
Customer Comments
hunter_s@msn.com from San Francisco, CA, USA , 11/15/97, rating=10:
The most incredible political biography ever written.
A monumental work, describing exactly what it took for Lyndon Johnson to win a Senate seat in 1948 by the narrowest of margins. Caro vividly illustrates the political cunning, unbelievable work ethic and
sheer desperation that went into Johnson's campaign. The reader strangely finds himself rooting for Johnson to win.
n8wwm@juno.com from Chicago , 09/21/97, rating=10:
The amazing story of Lyndon Johnson Absolutely spellbinding! A man who did so much good AND so much evil...chronoicled with warts and all.
Few presidents have exerted such influence and shown such smallness of mind at the same time. Caro shows us the complexity and motivations of a politician born in the age of William Jennings Bryan and wielding naked power in the age of Vietnam and atomic weapons. Amazing and a MUST READ FOR ALL HISTORY BUFFS.The reader will come away from this book<READ VOL 1 FIRST> saying "wow!".
mench@postoffice.ptd.net , 03/10/97, rating=9:
A scary yet brilliant anaylisis of politics at work A great political biography that demonstrates how modern politics are no different than those of the 1940's...Mr. Cairo writes in an engaging style that tells a complicated story with understanding and insight.He respects his subject yet points out his many flaws
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