THE THIRTY-FIRST OF MARCH: An Intimate Portrait of Lyndon Johnson's Final Days in Office

From Lyndon Johnson's chief speechwriter of 20 years (1948–1968) comes a revealing chronicle of LBJ's career. Although framed around March 31, 1968—the day Johnson announced that he would not seek re-election—Busby's book (left among his papers when he died in 2000) incorporates his eyewitness perspective on far more than just the narrow slice of time between March '68 and January '69. Busby was 24 when he went to work for the then Texas representative. He accompanied Johnson on to the Senate, the vice-presidency and the presidency. Always, he was an insider, and a shrewd, observant and eloquent one at that. Frustratingly, the manuscript had no chapters addressing Johnson's Senate career and his rise to majority leader. One of Busby's best and most important chapters explains his role as a key Johnson functionary on the day President Kennedy was killed and through the subsequent transition. Here are dramatic, intimate details of an uncommon and historically important variety. For example, Busby, who sat up with Johnson and other close associates on the evening of JFK's murder, notes, "I can only describe it as a night—and a room—almost unbearably alive with quiet stillness." A preface by Busby's son and an introduction by Busby's good friend Hugh Sidey help put this noteworthy work in context. (Mar.)