Winner of two Pulitzer Prizes; three National Book Critics Circle Awards; the National Book Award; the National Humanities Medal, awarded by President Barack Obama; the National Academy of Arts and Letters Gold Medal in Biography; the Society of American Historians’ Francis Parkman Prize, and many more recognitions Robert Caro ’53 said he was never as excited to receive an award as he was to give one.

The award he spoke of is the Robert Caro ’53 Prize for Literary Excellence in the Writing of History, which Horace Mann School, its Upper Division History Department, and Head of School Dr. Tom Kelly established in the author’s honor. The Prize recognizes a work of historical research that is also written in compelling narrative. Caro presented the award on May 26, 2015 to present the award to graduating senior Lindsay Zelson ’15 for her essay “The Influenza of 1918: A Comprehensive Account.”

“It’s wonderful that HM is giving this award in my name,” said Caro. “I’ve always believed that when doing historical research you should concentrate on the writing as well as the history, and that a work of non-fiction should be as exciting to read as a work of fiction. What makes books endure is the quality of the writing. I did an experiment one summer to try to prove this. I read two chapters of Gibbon and then two chapters of War and Peace, going back and forth, two chapters each, to see if the level of prose compared, and it did. I learned a lot of new information in reading Lindsay’s essay, for instance, that more people were killed by the 1918 influenza epidemic than by the Bubonic Plague, and how it spread. But, most of all, this essay is wonderful because of the quality of the writing. This year’s essay was exceptional, and it is truly thrilling for me to present this award.”

Caro presented the award at a luncheon at the garden patio of the Head of School's home. Participating in the event were several members of the author’s Class of 1953, all of whom remain in close touch. “Three of my classmates are here today. We get together about once a month for dinner, and inevitably the conversation turns to Horace Mann. Writing has always been a big part of Horace Mann School, and I remember, you got two grades – one for content and one for grammar and writing,” Caro said, recalling a teacher who was a particularly hard grader. Years later, after winning his first Pulitzer Prize for The Power Broker, published in 1975, and after embarking on his acclaimed five-part biography The Years of Lyndon Johnson, Caro saw that teacher at a book signing. “He gave me an ‘A’ for content.”

Dr. Kelly extended a warm welcome to all those gathered for the occasion, including Caro’s wife author Ina Caro and his son and grandson Chase Caro ’76 and Barry Caro ’05, both HM alumni, and his longtime and distinguished editor Katherine Hourigan. “Mr. Caro, you are a huge part of the legacy of Horace Mann School. The fact that you chose to give this award at Horace Mann speaks to the good cheer of our entire community. The fact that you would make being here today a priority is very meaningful to all of us, and we thank you.”

Participating in the event as well were HM Upper Division Head Dr. David Schiller, Upper Division Dean and English teacher Dr. Jessica Levenstein who was one of the essay competition judges, and members of the HM Upper Division History Department faculty, including teacher Barry Bienstock, who worked on establishing the award with Caro, and who also taught Zelson in his History Research Seminar. Introducing the alumnus Bienstock noted that the nature of the award goes back to discussions he and Caro had about the importance of writing in historical research, and how the excellence of all of Caro’s books is what causes new generations “to discover Robert Caro as if for the first time” because of the enduring quality of the literary work that brings the exceptional research and historical acumen of his own works to vibrant life.