The Passage of Power: The Years of Lyndon Johnson by Robert A. Caro
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Summary
The Passage of Power follows Lyndon Johnson through both the most frustrating and the most triumphant periods of his career - 1958 to 1964. It is a time that would see him trade the extraordinary power he had created for himself as Senate Majority Leader for what became the wretched powerlessness of a Vice President in an administration that disdained and distrusted him. Yet it was, as well, the time in which the presidency, the goal he had always pursued, would be thrust upon him in the moment it took an assassin's bullet to reach its mark. For the first time, we see the Kennedy assassination through Lyndon Johnson's eyes. We watch Johnson step into the presidency, inheriting a staff fiercely loyal to his slain predecessor; a Congress determined to retain its power over the executive branch; and a nation in shock and mourning. We see how within weeks - grasping the reins of the presidency with supreme mastery - he propels through Congress essential legislation that at the time of Kennedy's death seemed hopelessly logjammed and seizes on a dormant Kennedy program to create the revolutionary War on Poverty. Caro makes clear how the political genius with which Johnson had ruled the Senate now enabled him to make the presidency wholly his own. This was without doubt Johnson's finest hour, before his aspirations and accomplishments were overshadowed and eroded by the trap of Vietnam. It is an epic story told with a depth of detail possible only through the peerless research that forms the foundation of Robert Caro's work, confirming Nicholas von Hoffman's verdict that "Caro has changed the art of political biography."
This book, "The Passage of Power: The Years of Lyndon Johnson," is undeniably brilliant and definitely worth your time. It is considered one of the most significant books of the year, and even received a rave review from Bill Clinton in The New York Times.
However, I must address an issue with Grover Gardner's handling of the English language in his narration. It's not that he is a terrible reader, but there is one glaring problem that detracts from the overall experience - he consistently mispronounces words, which can be quite annoying and distracting.
It seems that Mr. Gardner would greatly benefit from having a producer or director who can guide him and ensure that he takes the time to verify the correct pronunciation of the words he is reading.
A quick search reveals that Mr. Gardner has lent his voice to a staggering 285 titles, resulting in thousands of hours of recordings. Perhaps he is simply too occupied with recording books to focus on pronunciations. Maybe the workload has taken a toll on him, leaving him sleep-deprived and unable to concentrate. It almost seems as though he could be recording books in his sleep.
My intention is not to attack Mr. Gardner personally, but rather to express the belief that a brilliant and significant book like "The Passage Of Power" deserves much more attention and care in its audio version. Just as we would not be satisfied with a book filled with spelling mistakes and typos, Grover Gardner's mispronunciations can be seen as the audio equivalent.
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