Path To Power: The Years of Lyndon Johnson Vol 1 by Robert Caro
1982 / 882 pgs. (263,718 words) Biography & Politics

This book the first in a series of four books (planned five) about President Lyndon Johnson and his rise from a small town in Texas to the White House. When starting this book, one can grasp the amount of research that went into the draft. The details about LBJ and his early life are amazing. It’s so vast, I can only highlight some points, or this post will be to long to read.

The story starts will LBJ’s family background. The Johnson’s and Bunton’s. It’s Bunton’s strain of the family that builds LBJ to what he becomes most famous for, the fearless politician that overpowered people with his will and height to get his way. It goes through LBJ’s childhood and how he was the center of everything. He demanded that. He wanted all the attention. He also wanted the best for him, and he didn’t care how he got it.

LBJ was very demanding and only cared about something if he could have full control over it. If he lost any authority, he wouldn’t care about it anymore. It was almost as if he was demanding people to follow him and only him. He was very abusing to those that where loyal to him.

Thes story follows LBJ through his time at Southwest Texas State Teachers College where he was notorious liar and exaggerated about everything. His nickname was “Bull” because everyone knew he was full of “Bull”s**t. This is also the start of LBJ’s political carrier when he created a group known as the White Stars to win control of the Student body from the Black Stars who he couldn’t join. The dark side of politics, the lying and rigging of the election started at STSTC for LBJ and it carried with him all the way to the White House.

After graduation from STSTC, he then goes to US Congress to serve as a secretary for Congressman. LBJ learns the inner workings of congress as the Congressman that he works for doesn’t really want to be in Congress.  This allows LBJ to build up his network for the eventual running for Congress himself which he embarks on in 1937 and wins.

The final chapters are about his failed bid for the US Senate in 1941. His years in the Congress until Roosevelt’s death. This is where Volume One ends.

I left out a vast amount of many details, like marriage to Lady Bird and the influence of Sam Rayburn on LBJ. This book is very dense and extremely well researched. While reading it, I never grew bored. It really is a page turner that I enjoyed as much as I enjoyed John Adam’s and Truman. The dept of this reminds me of another extremely well researched and narrated book At Dawn We Slept.

I would recommend this book to anyone that enjoys a good biography about a politician.        

Enjoy a good cup of coffee and a delightful book!

Lopaka