That said, Caro goes too far in attacking Moses on a broad front, often on charges that are spurious. At the same time, he does not sufficiently acknowledge the contributions Moses made to the City and the Nation. This book follows a problematic habit of Caro of needing to paint his subjects in a purely negative light, attacking them viciously and always underestimating their positive contributions.
On the unfair attacks, Caro charges Moses with ruining NYC riverfront by running highways along them. While that is true as a matter of fact, he fails to explain that, at the time, driving was seen as recreation and every American city followed the identical path. On another score, Caro criticizes Moses because his highways generated traffic thus requiring the creation of more highways. Again the charge is unfair. Traffic studies were at best primitive and the effects of traffic multiplication were little understood.
At the same time, Caro fails to appreciate the sheer scope of Moses vision and the works he built. Nor, while he attacks Mosses' manipulation of the process, does he ever deal with the really tough question of whether another way to build great public works exist other than with a man like Moses.
For all that, Caro's book is still an essential read for those interested in the art of politics and power as well as urban planning. While the book is long, occasionally over written, and shares with Caro?s other works a rather unfortunate tendency towards melodrama. it still offers the reader much that they cannot learn elsewhere. Moses was an artist who used America?s greatest city as his canvas. Sadly, his masterpiece showed signs of early wear and mistakes by the artist.
Many readers and historians have used this book for a primer on how NOT to conduct urban planning. Moses' heavy hand, disdain for delays and love of the automobile in transit-centered New York City are really only a small part of this story. Like the title says, I think Caro really wrote a tale of a man whose official job titles were "only" the head of the Triborough Bridge & Tunnel Authority and the NY Parks system, but the power he wielded shook mayors, senators and even a president or two along the way. His power transcended political party and popular will, and only did late in his career, as he battled society women over expanding a parking lot in Central Park, did he begin to fall from his once-untouchable pedestal. Caro emphasizes that Moses never used power for financial wealth, and lived modestly his entire life.
Caro does a phenomenal job by describing how Moses' insistence on building the Cross-Bronx Expy through the heart of a thriving residential neighborhood led to the widescale decay of that neighborhood for generations to come. It was certainly the book's high point.
Historians today now look at Moses with a kinder light than Caro did in 1974, citing him for the quality and aesthetic touches he put into many of his highways and parks (remember, by 1974, "form follows function" reigned supreme, and all public buildings and projects were bland, faceless monoliths of concrete and cinderblocks). Even the oft-quoted statement that Moses deliberately designed his parkway bridges too low to accomodate buses has been discredited by Caro himself in later years.
Even if you have never ridden public transit or set foot in New York City, you will not be disappointed by this book. It is perhaps the best biography I have ever written and one of my favorite works of non-fiction.
The Power Broker is an unforgettable book.
"Common Ground" by J Anothony Lukas.
"The Death and Life of Great American Cities" by Jane Jacobs.
And this one.Biography at its best! I loved this book! I have always been interested in Long Island history and no one played a larger role in carving so much of its landscape that Robert Moses.
Caro provides insight in Moses' early years as an ambitious college student full of energy and ideas to spark efficiency and beauty. Caro also deals with Moses' rise to power and actions taken with that power. Truly Moses had more say than anyone else in New York for a number of years. The reader learns that Moses used this power both positively and nagatively.
We see a visionary who create a playground on the grandest scale. Jones Beach IS the jewel of Long Island because Moses had the confidence to dream big (and leave his budget by the wayside). The chapter of his discovery of making the beach a reality is just marvelous. I will never forget the image of Moses walking on the deserted sand dunes dreaming of what could (and would) be.
Yet we see a very different man who willingly destroyed the pleasant community of East Tremont since it was in the way of his vision. Care paints a picture that is both critical and respectful.
An interesting anecdote from the book. Anyone familiar with the parkways of Long Island has likely wondered what Moses was thinking. We learn that the man who designed so many of Long Island's roads never even had a driver's liscence.
This book is well worth reading, if the length seems daunting, you will be caught up in this great life story very quickly!