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Book ReviewsThe Power Broker: Robert Moses And The Fall Of New York (Part 1) |
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Book: The Power Broker: Robert Moses And The Fall Of New York (Part 1)
Written by: Robert A. Caro |
Publisher: Books on Tape, Inc.
Average Customer Rating: 5.0 / 5
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History that reads like a novel
Rating:
5 / 5
Anyone fascinated by New York City history will find this masterpiece hard to put down. This is especially impressive given the sheer girth of the tome and the complicated nature of much of the information on the city government, the various NYC Authorities and the laws relating to urban planning. Caro keeps us rivetted through hundreds of pages by his narrative brilliance and the magnetic power of the Moses persona. I read somewhere that he spent 9 years writing this book. It shows.
For Better or Worse
Rating:
5 / 5
Robert Moses was a man of extraordinary abilities, who accomplished a great deal in the course of his long career. He justifiably prided himself on being a man who was able to "get things done," and for most of his career he enjoyed an enviable reputation for the parks, parkways, bridges, and other projects that he conceived and got built.
Moses was also ruthless in pushing through his projects. He had no interest in competing priorities or in mitigating the concerns of people who would be affected. It took a sitting president of the United States (FDR), for instance, to force him to accept the virtually unanimous verdict of New York City planners and construct the Battery tunnel between lower Manhattan and Brooklyn instead of a bridge.
Should we revere Moses for his accomplishments or fault him for the things he did not do (and took the resources that others might have used to do), such as supporting subway and commuter railroad systems? Despite the "fall of New York subtitle, Robert Caro ultimately leaves this decision to readers. "It is impossible to say that New York would have been a better city if Robert Moses had never lived. It is possible to say only that it would have been a different city."
My take: While being able to get things done is surely important, there is also much to be said for doing the right things. People who get their own way too often for too long without listening to what anyone else has to say tend to go off the rails eventually, and that is what Moses did. Still, there are not many 1,100-page books that are hard to put down -- and this is one of them. Highly recommended!
A treasure-trove of information
Rating:
5 / 5
This book is a treasure-trove of information. It is not only an in depth analysis of Robert Moses a study of Belle Moskowitz, Nelson Rockefellar, Al Dewey, Fiorella Laguardia, FDR and others.
This book is about a man infatiuated with power and not money. It is about the understanding that Moses needed to surround himself with those that had money so that he could accomplish what we wanted to build without be 'outed' as a profit monger.
The book reveals that Moses was racist towards blacks and puerto ricans and what he did to exclude them from the benefits of his labor.
Another plus about this book is the author details money issues in such a way that is not boring and wanting to skip over. He writes with clarity and an 'evenflowness' that kept me engaged through-out.
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