The Years of Lyndon Johnson
The Years of Lyndon Johnson by Robert Caroby Robert Caro
Shares rank 4 of 9 biographies by recommenders
People recommend Robert Caro's multi-volume LBJ biography for its detailed account of how skill, subterfuge and manipulation shaped Johnson's career. The main caveat is that it is a long read.
People recommend Robert Caro's multi-volume LBJ biography for its detailed account of how skill, subterfuge and manipulation shaped Johnson's career. The main caveat is that it is a long read.
6 people gave an opinion
- recommend it
- 6
- criticize it
- 0
- approval share
- 100%
Recommended in 5 of 13 months
- November 2025: not recommended
- December 2025: not recommended
- January 2026: recommended
- February 2026: not recommended
- March 2026: recommended
- April 2026: not recommended
- May 2026: not recommended
- June 2026: recommended
- July 2026: recommended
- August 2026: not recommended
- September 2026: not recommended
- October 2026: recommended
- November 2026: not recommended (month in progress)
Why it doesn’t carry the badge
- 6 people recommend itNeeds 10 or more, not met.
- Nobody criticizes itNeeds 2 to 1 or better, met.
- Recommended in 5 of 13 monthsNeeds 4 or more, met.
The same three rules apply to every product, and the badge can’t be bought. How the badge works
What people say about it
The reasons people give, with the number of comments that give each one. Open a reason to read what they said.
Why people recommend it
Each mark is one comment
Incredible, underrated multi-volume series
“the LBJ series are incredible and underrated”
Comment from 25 Oct 2026 in “Washing machines took decades to catch on” “his LBJ series is phenomenal”
Comment from 1 Oct 2026 in “Ask HN: What are you reading?”
What people warn about
Each mark is one comment
Long, demanding undertaking to read
“I really encourage interested folks to read the biography (though it's an undertaking).”
Comment from 22 Jan 2026 in “Internet voting is insecure and should not be used in public elections”
Other biographies people recommend
The four most recommended other biographies, with the same counts for each, so you can compare like for like. The tick on each bar marks the 2 to 1 line the badge needs.
| Product | Recommend | Criticize | Approval | Months | Owned | Badge |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| The Man from the Futureby Ananyo Bhattacharya | 9 | 1 | 90% | 3 | — | — |
| Steve Jobs in Exileby Geoffrey Cain | 7 | 0 | 100% | 4 | — | — |
| Steve Jobs and the NeXT Big Thingby Randall Stross | 7 | 0 | 100% | 3 | — | — |
| The Years of Lyndon Johnsonby Robert CaroThis page | 6 | 0 | 100% | 5 | — | — |
| The Infinity Machineby Sebastian Mallaby | 6 | 1 | 86% | 4 | — | — |
What people said
5 of the 6 comments that mention it, newest first. Each links to the original comment.
“the LBJ series are incredible and underrated”
“his LBJ series is phenomenal”
“I love history and biography.”
“Have you read Caro's (epic) biographies of LBJ? It's amazing how much skill, subterfuge, and manipulation was required”
“I really encourage interested folks to read the biography (though it's an undertaking).”
Counts come from 1,795,640 Hacker News comments, November 2025 to November 2026. How we count. Report a mistake.