Capitol Annex’s Holiday Book Guide, Part II
Last week, we started our Holiday Book Guide series. This week, we’re returning with several selections we’d like to bring to your attention.
First and foremost this week, we want to highlight a book that is a great Christmas pick even though it won’t actually end up in your mailbox until next year (you can pre-order, though). That’s “Netroots Rising: How a Citizen Army Of Bloggers And Online Activists Is Changing American Politics” by Lowell Fields and Nate Wilcox.
[Disclaimer: Nate Wilcox is a friend, but we still wouldn't hype his book if it sucked. Hey, we've got our standards. :)]
Check out this review of the book by none other than James Moore:
“Two histories are emerging for our country’s past decade. One is in the headlines and the network newscasts and it consistently misses the profound political changes washing over American democracy. Nate Wilcox and Lowell Feld, however, are leading thinkers in the gathering army of citizens determined to use the Internet to return our democracy to its founding principles. And in Netroots Rising, you will read the story of all the bright young minds who have found a new way to water the roots of our tree of liberty. America is still in good hands and you can see its bright future reflected on these pages.” - James C. Moore, Author of Bush’s Brain: How Karl Rove Made George W. Bush Presidential
A damned good review. We can’t wait to read this one ourselves.
Next, we’d like to draw your attention to a book we read last summer: Randall Wood’s “LBJ: Architect Of American Ambition.” We’ll admit it isn’t as extensive as Robert Caro’s works on Texas’ favorite progressive son, and that there are a couple of errors in the book (for example, Jackie Kennedy’s dress was pink, not green, that fateful day in 1963 in Dallas).
However, if you don’t have time for Caro’s multi-volume set but still want to feel like you’re getting a good dose of LBJ-related history, then Woods’ book is for you.
To close out today’s installment, we’ll bring your attention to a book that every student of progressive Texas politics should have in their library: “Barbara Jordan, American Hero.”
This book provides the student of progressive Texas politics a real education about three things: (a) Barbara Jordan, obviously; (b) the Texas Legislature during the 1960s and 1970s; (c) Texas politics in the 1960s through 1990s.
Every book that chronicles the life of a Texas politician isn’t just an education about that politician; it’s also an opportunity to learn about politics in Texas during that politician’s era. Since an understanding of what’s happened in the past in Texas politics is key to understanding what is going on now, many of these works are key to understanding our political history.
This particular work does a very good job of educating the reader about the culture of the state Senate and House during Jordan’s tenure, as well as the legislation that was being considered at that time.
It’s a great work every progressive should own.
Popularity: 40% [?]
Do you know that you can 
