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Working
240 pages
An intimate, inspiring masterclass in obsession that invites you to sit beside a legendary biographer as he sifts through the archives of history.
What it feels like
Reading this book feels like pulling up a chair in a quiet, sunlit corner of the New York Public Library alongside a master craftsman. It is a steady, deeply intimate meditation on the art of looking closely and the relentless pursuit of truth. The prose is elegant and rhythmic, carrying the reader through the dusty archives of presidential libraries and the tense, quiet moments of a pivotal interview. There is a profound reverence for the written word here, wrapped in a studious, inspiring atmosphere that celebrates the sheer labor of writing. It will utterly delight journalists, historians, and anyone who finds romance in the obsessive, painstaking work of turning the raw materials of history into enduring art.
- Mood
- studious
- intimate
- inspiring
- quietly awe-struck
- Tone
- earnest
- meticulous
- reverent
- reflective
- authoritative
- Pace
- steady
- Themes
- the craft of writing · the mechanics of power · obsessive research · the weight of history · dedication to a life's work
- The writing
- Elegant, rhythmic, and deeply considered, characterized by the same meticulous precision the author applies to his research.
- The arc
- Begins with the daunting, overwhelming scale of historical inquiry and settles into the profound, quiet satisfaction of uncovering hidden truths.
- Who it's for
- Writers, historians, and curious minds who are fascinated by the obsessive pursuit of truth and the invisible architecture of political power.
Content notes
- political corruption
- displacement of marginalized communities
About the book
Two-time Pulitzer Prize winner Robert Caro gives us a glimpse into his own life and work. He describes what it was like to interview the mighty Robert Moses; what it felt like to begin discovering the extent of the political power Moses wielded; the combination of discouragement and exhilaration he felt confronting the vast holdings of the Lyndon B. Johnson Library in Austin, Texas; his encounters with witnesses, including longtime residents wrenchingly displaced by the construction of Moses' Cross-Bronx Expressway and Lady Bird Johnson acknowledging the beauty and influence of one of LBJ's mistresses. He gratefully remembers how, after years of working in solitude, he found a writers' community at the New York Public Library, and details the ways he goes about planning and composing his books. Caro recalls the moments at which he came to understand that he wanted to write not just about the men who wielded power but about the people and the politics that were shaped by that power. And he talks about the importance to him of the writing itself, of how he tries to infuse it with a sense of place and mood to bring characters and situations to life on the page.
Description from Open Library.
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