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The Prince of Darkness: 50 Years Reporting in Washington
Author: Robert D. Novak
ISBN: 1400051991
Publisher: Crown Forum - 2007-07-10
Format: Hardcover
Book Details Customer Reviews
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Customer Reviews:

Fascinating Look Behind the Scenes

This was a wonderful book. For a political junkie it is an absolute must read. The behind the scenes look at politics and reporting was fascinating. The tidbits of history and inside look at the systems of power make this book irresistible. If I had read this book as a freshman in college or as a high school senior it would have changed the course of my life; I would have become a reporter. Mr. Novak writes about his incredible career as a Washington reporter and balances this part of the book with stories about his own life including his relationships, drinking and religion. Really, a highly recommended book.

Very Moving. I felt the pages slobbering at me.

Although this book was written before he hit the bike rider in DC and drove off, Novak still manages to hold the reader's interest. As I recall the news story, he hit the bike rider so hard that the biker was sprawled against his windshield and slid off. Novak drove off and then claimed that he was not aware of what had happened. Some medical professionals have speculated that his brain tumor may have had something to do with the accident. But I like to believe that was just Novak being Novak. I believe that it is precisely this audaciousness that has kept Novak at the top of his profession for these many years. The Valerie Plame thing is another one..when James Carville made a comment to him about his role in all of that, Novak simply disonnected his microphone and walked off the set mumbling that he doesn't have to put up with this sh*&. Simply brilliant. Oh yeah, and the trademark slobbering that skyrocketed him to fame and fortune on CNN. That's another factor in his being at the top of his profession - that superhuman ability to achieve any semblance of enunciation through the gallons of slobber in that bulldog mouth. It's a brilliant book by a brilliant slobbering man with a highly unpleasant and creepy demeanor who hit a guy with a car real hard and drove off and claimed he didn't know what happened. Very inspiring stuff.

Novak, warts and all

In some ways "The Prince of Darkness" is a typical political memoir,
one more attempt to justify one's actions and one more attempt to
destroy or at least discredit one's enemies. This book is more than
that, and less than that. Novak covered national politics for over 50
years, so most of the book is about politics and politicians.
Novak worked for several newspapers, chains, syndicates, magazines,
stations, and networks. There is a lot of information about the
business of news and commentary in print and broadcast media, and
about competition and cooperation in journalism.

There is more than the usual amount of admission of error, both
personal failures and professional mistakes. There is a lot of history
reported here, but it is less than a complete history of most of the
events mentioned. Rather, it is just enough to provide context for
Novak's bragging about a scoop or complaining about someone's anger
over his analysis.

Novak is known as a conservative columnist, but the list of Republicans
that hated him is long. The list of those that Novak did not respect is
also long and includes members of both (all) parties. There is some
animosity over polices, but most often the cause of the friction was
lying, at least according to Novak.

In spite of his inclination to the right, Novak seems much more an
analyst than a cheerleader. He tells us his predictions of House and
Senate gains and losses and Electoral College totals for various
elections. I'm impressed by his accuracy.

Readers interested in particular historical events or particular people
get some help. The index seems pretty complete, but I'm just judging
by size. The quotes from the columns or broadcasts are identified by
date.

This is a controversial book. Since you are reading these reviews you
are probably trying to decide if you should read the book. As with
other controversial works, it pays to look at other reviews by the
reviewers with strong opinions, especially those expressed in
strong language.

I think readers from anywhere on the political spectrum can enjoy this
book and learn something from it. It is not just for political junkies.
I have to remind myself a few times each year to read a political book,
because I should pay more attention to the field. This one was time well
spent.

Great Memoir By a Great Journalist and Great American

Let's begin with total disclosure: I once worked for Mr. Novak, back in the 1980s when Ronald Reagan was president and DC was an exciting town.

I admired Mr. Novak then. I admire him now. He is one of the most dedicated professionals I have ever met. Then, I was a conservative and a Catholic. I have since returned to my liberal roots, and left the church (I am now an atheist) just as Mr. Novak was completing the journey that he had told me he was on even back then (he has since been baptized into the Catholic Church).

No matter. Mr. Novak was -- and still is, on this day that he announced his retirement -- the consummate journalist, the kind of reporter that I would have wanted to model my work on, had my life taken that turn.

This book is his autobiography. And while it seems that he has pulled no punches, neither has he been malicious or unfair. And you can be damn sure it hasn't been ghostwritten!

I know this isn't much of a review of the book. It is, instead, a homage to the man himself, a very good and decent reporter and a great American.

More Than 50 Years Of Inside Political Reporting

I was looking forward to this read with considerable anticipation. I was not disappointed. I have followed the authors columns and watched many of his tv appearances from when he was a liberal-moderate back in the Rockefeller days and have happily observed his transformation over the years to a no holds bar conservative. This book offers the reader valuable behind the scene insights for virtually everything of significance that has happened politically during the last half century. A must read.

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Editorial Reviews:

Long before Robert Novak became the center of a political firestorm in the Valerie Plame CIA leak scandal, he had established himself as one of the finestâand most controversialâpolitical reporters in America. Now, in this sweeping, monumental memoir, Novak offers the first full account of his involvement in that affair, while also revealing the fascinating story of his remarkable life and career. This is a singular journey through a half century of stories, scandals, and personal encounters with Washingtonâs most powerful and colorful people.

Novak has been a Washington insider since the days when the place was a sleepy southern town and journalism was built on shoe leather and the ability to cultivate and keep sources (not to mention the ability to hold oneâs liquor). He has covered every president since Truman, known (personally and professionally) virtually all the big movers and shakers in D.C., and broken a number of the biggest storiesâthe Plame story, we see here, being far from the most important. In this book, he puts it all into perspective. He also reveals the extraordinary transformations that have fundamentally remade Washington, politics, and journalismâand his own role in those transformations.

Moving beyond the âfirst draft of historyâ that is daily journalism, Novak can at last tell the stories behind the stories. He vividly recalls encounters with the Kennedys (angry meetings with Bobby, a scary ride home in Jackâs convertible), his unusual relationship with Lyndon Johnson (who hosted Novakâs wedding reception and who, âdrunk as a loon,â had to be carried out of a bar by the young newsman), a decidedly odd off-the-record lunch with Ronald Reagan, and his first meetings with George W. Bushâat which the veteran journalist seriously underestimated the future president. We meet other fascinating characters as well, from Deng Xiaoping to Ted Turner to Ezra Pound.

Writing with bracing candor, Novak tells us how politics and journalism truly operate at the highest levels, both publicly and behind closed doors. He is equally open about his private experience. He writes frankly about the days when his drinking reflected too closely the boozy ways of the town. He acknowledges times when his job took precedence over his family. He is reflective about his political journey to the right. And he writes more personally than ever before about his spiritual journey, from his early life as a secular Jew to his conversion to Catholicism at the age of sixty-seven.

Packed with riveting, never-before-told stories, The Prince of Darkness is a hugely entertaining and equally perceptive view of fifty years in the life of Washington and the people who cover it.

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