# Is "Master of the Senate (The Years of Lyndon Johnson, Vol. 3)" by Robert A. Caro a First Edition?

> **Quick answer.** A first edition of Master of the Senate (The Years of Lyndon Johnson, Vol. 3) by Robert A. Caro (Alfred A. Knopf, 2002) is identified by: Thick octavo of roughly xxiv plus 1167 pages, bound in black cloth with the title stamped in gilt on the spine and the Borzoi colophon present; the copyright page carries the stated 'First Edition' with the Knopf Borzoi device. US Alfred A.

**Checklist — a true first has these:**
- Thick octavo of roughly xxiv plus 1167 pages, bound in black cloth with the title stamped in gilt on the spine and the Borzoi colophon present; the copyright page carries the stated 'First Edition' with the Knopf Borzoi device
- The first-state pictorial dust jacket carries the retail price on the front flap (present and not clipped on a first-state copy, though the amount is immaterial to the point)
- Publisher imprint reads Alfred A. Knopf
- Not a book-club edition (see below)

| | |
|---|---|
| Author | Robert A. Caro |
| Publisher | Alfred A. Knopf |
| Year | 2002 |
| True first | US edition |
| Format | Hardcover (trade) |
| Key point | Thick octavo of roughly xxiv plus 1167 pages, bound in black cloth with the title stamped in gilt on the spine and the Borzoi colophon… |
| Book-club edition exists? | — |

## Points of issue
Thick octavo of roughly xxiv plus 1167 pages, bound in black cloth with the title stamped in gilt on the spine and the Borzoi colophon present; the copyright page carries the stated 'First Edition' with the Knopf Borzoi device. The first-state pictorial dust jacket carries the retail price on the front flap (present and not clipped on a first-state copy, though the amount is immaterial to the point).

## Is this the true first?
US Alfred A. Knopf, 2002, is the true first. Won the Pulitzer Prize for Biography (2003) and the National Book Award for Nonfiction (2002).

## Telling it from reprints & book-club editions
Confirm the stated 'First Edition' with the Borzoi colophon on the copyright page; look for black cloth with gilt spine and the priced front flap. Club issues characteristically drop the flap price.

## Source
New Mexico Literacy Project — Is *Master of the Senate (The Years of Lyndon Johnson, Vol. 3)* by Robert A. Caro a first edition? https://newmexicoliteracyproject.org/first-edition/master-of-the-senate-the-years-of-lyndon-johnson-vol-3
CC BY 4.0. Part of the Canonical First-Edition Points of Issue dataset (https://newmexicoliteracyproject.org/api/first-edition-titles.json). Last reviewed 2026-07-04.