Knit to This
Knit to This: The Power Broker
I’m a big fan of a big book. Give me your Counts of Monte Cristo, your Bleak Houses, your Goldfinches.
Ask me about Infinite Jest, which I’ve read (twice) because I didn’t have children when it came out and had plenty of free time.
But when my beloved Roman Mars decided 2024 was the year of Robert Caro’s The Power Broker, I was very much not on board. Who the heck is Robert Moses? Why on earth would he warrant 1,200 pages?
Knitters, I now know how wrong I was.
Robert Moses and his iron fist defined nearly every structure, park, and road in New York City during the first half of the 20th century. The choices he made built the infrastructure that New Yorkers (in both the city and other parts of the state) have spent decades grappling with.
Caro spends all those pages giving context to the players on the scene (FDR! La Guardia! Belle Moskowitz, the political adviser who very much deserves her own book please and thank you) while explaining why Moses did what he did.
Hint: it wasn’t because Moses wanted to do the most good for the most people.
The Power Broker is about one guy, sure, but it’s also about wealth and race and class. The American Experiment succeeds when there are checks and balances. Moses’s NYC is what happens when they fail utterly.
What makes the reading even more fulfilling is 99% Invisible’s The Power Broker Breakdown podcast. I’m already in the tank for Roman Mars, natch, but co-host Elliott Kalan, a former Daily Show head writer, is my favorite, if only because he’s as into public systems as I am.
Each monthly episode opens with the pair diving into the highlights of that month’s assigned section of the book. Not only is it a nice summary of that section’s skullduggery, it introduces concepts like NIPL (a coinage of Kalan’s that stands for Noticeable Improvements in Peoples’ Lives), which is what helped Moses acquire so much power in the first place.
The back half of the podcast features an interview with folks who know a thing or two about public service or writing, like Caro himself, Pete Buttigieg, Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, and Jamelle Bouie.
While you could knit to the podcast and soak up the general flavor of The Power Broker, rest assured that there is an audiobook version of Caro’s work, which clocks in at a mere 66 hours and nine minutes. Break out that queen-sized bedspread you’ve wanted to knit up and settle in.
Related: When both The New Yorker and a twentysomething influencer are reading the same book—and a recent hot ticket in New York was the play starring Ralph Fiennes as a very loud Moses—it’s clear that The Power Broker is Having a Moment.
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“Infinite Jest” twice??? Wow! Thanks for this post. Lots of good stuff here!
I’m a big hit at parties.
Thank you for the nudge! Your enthusiasm on the topic is contagious. I think this maybe perfect time to start this and a knitting new project or two…along with another emotional support chicken.
Thanks for adding to my TBR pile
Make sure to put this one near the bottom so that if the pile topples, it doesn’t hit you on the head. It’s a hefty book.
My husband read this book in the 1980’s. I remember dusting around it on his night stand for about a year. He was just starting his career in NYC. It was staggering to learn the backstory behind the infrastructure of the metropolitan area.
I love this book, and I love meeting people at the crossroads of public service and knitting!!
Thank you! This book has been on my list for a long time. Learning about the podcast has just moved it up to near the top.
This sounds great! I’ve been meaning to read it for years & have often lamented that I hadn’t known about it during my voracious reading years. This sounds like a way to get my through it. Thank you!
Belle has her own book.
https://www.amazon.com/Belle-Moskowitz-Feminine-Politics-Routledge-ebook/dp/B07LHDVSFN?ref_=ast_author_mpb
This book has been on my list for years. The size was just overwhelming. After listening to Roman Mars I decided I was commited. But maybe an ebook version to avoid tendonitis!
Super interesting. I love NYC to visit and shop. My youngest brother made NYC his career home. This should be very interesting . Ty
You might be interested in the movie Turn Every Page. It is a documentary about Caro and his editor for both this book and his series on LBJ. It is a fascinating look at creation of these books and these two men.
It’s on my list!
Robert Caro’s writing is first rate! I’ve enjoyed his books on LBJ.
This sounds awesome. Especially since the bits of knowledge I have about New York City have come from TV shows and movies. (Sex in the City, Law and Order, Ghostbusters?)Going on the “definitely read me first pile”!
I read this book a few years ago – growing up on Long Island in the 60s and 70s it was so interesting to see m, for better or worse, why tall the way it is. I will say, Jones Beach State Park continues to be the best decision ever.
That should have read, ” … interesting to see, for better or worse, why it’s all the way it is in the NY Metro area.”
and when you have finished The Power Broker, please read The Death and Life of Great American Cities by Jane Jacobs.
If Robert Caro dies before he finishes the fifth LBJ book, I will be plunged into the slough of despond. I’ve read (and listened to) all of his books at least twice, and I learn more each time. Mr. Caro puts other biographers in the shade.
It’s astonishing how entertaining a read it is! Caro’s writing is so vivid, and his scholarship so engaging, it makes the millions of pages fly by far more quickly than it seems like they should. It’s truly an incredible tale about the accumulation of power and the shaping of our modern world. Also, it’s almost good the book is so large, as it needs to be able to take a solid rage punch about once per chapter (better than flinging it against the wall!).
And the podcast is a delight, for its humor as well as the analysis. The obvious audience is anyone with an interest in urbanism, but it seems like it should almost be mandatory listening for everyone’s civic education.
Thank you for this recommendation! Wondering about the ephemera used to mark your progress each month. Are they personal items or purchased? Thank you.
They are stickers I purchased from an etsy seller at some point. They seem to no longer be on etsy, otherwise I’d point you there. 🙁
I’m 1/3 of the way through the Power Broker and I love it too! Roman Mars’ commentary about each chapter on his podcast is very entertaining and helpful at following the book. Great for knitting to.
Well, after reading this post yesterday morning, I sat down with a new knitting project and listened to 4 episodes. Each episode is 2 hours. It was a perfect knitting Saturday. I almost never have a day that I can set aside to do that, and it was just perfect. Great story!!