we had robert caro's latest volume in his ongoing biography of lyndon johnson and andrew sullivan's are from the free which was recently published. >> host: hundred page compendium looking at different child-rearing examples of special needs children. those three books alone are substantial but are just the tip of the iceberg in terms of what is on for a nonfiction. >> bob minzesheimer, same question. >> it was a big year for dead presidents. you mentioned robert caro's fourth of probably a five volumes on lyndon johnson, just an incredible lack of reporting and writing, 20th-century american history. also the team of rivals published in 2005 is back on the best-seller list thanks to steven spielberg's movie lincoln. on our list was up to 20 or so which is remarkable for a series that is out so long. a new biography of thomas jefferson, just when you think there's not much more to be said about thomas jefferson's someone writes a popular, beautiful, controversial book. presidents have been in the news as well. >> hard to mention dead presidents and not talk about bill o'reilly and his t

robert caro presents the fourth volume of his biography of lyndon johnson, "the passage of power," the years of lyndon johnson. this is about 45 minutes. [applause] >> thank you. thank you. that was such a wonderful introduction. such a wonderful introduction it reminds me what lyndon johnson used to say when he got a nice introduction. he used to say he wished his parents were alive to hear it. he said his father would have loved it and his mother would have believed it. you know, when winston churchill was writing his great biography of his ancestors someone asked him how -- he said i am working on the fifth of a projected four volumes. i am not comparing myself to winston churchill but regard to the lyndon johnson biography we are in the same boat. i have been writing about lyndon johnson so long that people ask me don't you get bored? the answer is the very opposite is true. the one reason i don't think of these books as being about lyndon johnson just as i didn't think of the power brokers being about robert moses, i never had the slightest interest in writing the book just to tel

and robert a. carothe years of lyndon johnson volume four published by albert a. knopf. and domingo martinez, "the boy kings of texas," published by lyons press, an imprint of pequot press. and the late anthony's shadid, "house of stone," mmr of home, family and the lost middle east, published by houghton mifflin harcourt. the winner of the 2012 national book award for nonfiction describes a world that couldn't be any more different from the world that we are enjoying here tonight. and yet it's a world that our world depends entirely upon. the subject of this book has been patronized and romanticized and eagerly ignored in previous work. in this book, they appear in all of their complexity. the villains and the sometimes villains along with the sometimes heroes. the s rafay behind this book reminds us all that good listening is an ethical act. stylistically, this book pretty much in dense a new genre of nonfiction writing because the author rivals the great novelists in developing characters and plottin

hoberman, james carroll, edward ball am victor nebraska, jean valentine, as was a net cord and, robert caro, both of whom are winners of the pulitzer prize. also winners of the pulitzer prize, katherine boo and applebaum, amanda foreman, national book critics circle winner laura and robert. and, finally, dave eggers. and stephen king, recipient of the national book foundation's medal for distinguished contributions to american letters. please join me in recognizing these great american writers. [applause] i would like to thank our financial supporters without him we could not bring you the awards, or our programs. again, i will ask you to hold your applause until i read the list. premier sponsors, barnes & noble, thanks guys, random house, the ford foundation, leadership sponsors, clinton meyer book publishing papers, a division of central national, coral graphics, penguin, and sponsors amazon, google, harper collins, stephen king, and deborah wiley, thank you. [applause] now for something special. i'd like to acknowledge in our audience the winners of our fourth annual innovation and readi

historian robert caro describes the scene in a pbs documentary. >> someone said they must be throwingas burning as it fell. they must be throwing out the burning bails of clothes. and then other bodies started to come down. people realized, even young girls would go out on the ledge. the flames would be loom up behind them and they jumped, of course to die. tried to cling to the ledge with their fingertips but they couldn't. you have plummeting down to the street scores of burning dead bodies. >> jennifer: in all 145 workers were killed. after that there were major changes to labor laws. new york created a factory investigating commission to look at safety rules and regulations. it identified 200 other factories with similar conditions. it also mandated better building access and fire alarm systems and limits on child labor. in total 60 new labor laws were put in place in the two years after the fire. as unions gained strength, workers increasingly saw their value. in 100 years since the fire though, the strong regulations that it spurred, might be fraying with dangerous results. in f

it is hummabling and gratifying to see it so well received, and to be following walter isakson, robert caro, and tony. [applause] i came to develop a strong interest in paul jennings when i was director of education at james madison's month peelier in virginia. i was familiar with jennings' memoir considered by the white house historical association to be the first memoir of life in the white house. it was titled "a colored man's rem innocences of james madison," and as the title implies, it's really more about the so-called great man than it was about the author himself. my interest was in paul jennings. i set out to discover elements of his own biography to uncover the circumstances behind the original publication of the memoir in 1865 and to find an interview living direct descendents. a slave in the white house, paul jennings and the madisons is the story of paul jennings' unique journey from slavery to freedom. it played out in the highest circles of ideas and power. the white house, james madison's study. it's the story of paul jennings' complicated relationship with the father of the

. >> guest: 40 years of robert caro who is one of my heroes, check that out on the down load. i have every intention -- i have a lot of reporting which influenced this first book even though they are not in it. i don't want to do quickie, i don't want my books -- i write them for history. there are a lot of documents that will be coming up later. >> guest: the book ends 1989 but at this point barack obama so far, 1961, born in honolulu, 61-62, lived in seattle, 62-67 back to honolulu, them jakarta, indonesia 67-71, honolulu 71-79, los angeles 79-81, attended occidental, move to new york, colombia, live there four years 1981-1985, and 1985 in chicago until 1989, off to harvard law school. two more pieces i've want to ask you about. now we are in 1989. where is his father? >> his father is dead in a car accident, driving drunk from a mid shift, from nairobi hospital. in nairobi we saw the streets, drunk driving several times in his life. >> host: our his grandparents the live? >> guest: all three are alive. his mother died right before his book came out. dreams for my father. fo

and robert a. carossage of power, the years of lyndon johnson, volume 4, published by alfred a.k november, and domingo martinez, the boy kings of texas, published by alliance press. and finally, the late anthony shadid, house of stone: a memoir of home, family and a lost middle east published by haughton mifflin harcourt. [applause] the winner of the 2012 national book award for nonfiction describes a world that couldn't be any more different from the world that we're enjoying here tonight. and yet it's a world with that our world depends entirely upon. the subject of this book have been patron hissized -- patronized and romanticized and eagerly ignored in previous work. in this book they appear in all of their complexity. the villains and the sometimes villains along with the sometimes heroes. the earth nothing mying behind this book reminds us all that good listening is an ethical act. stylistically, this book pretty much invents a new genre of of nonfiction writing pause the author -- because the aut