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Bob Woodward’s The Secret Man

I read Bob Woodward’s new book, The Secret Man, this weekend, and all I can say is, what a story. The Secret Man details Bob Woodward’s relationship with W. Mark Felt, the former number two man at the FBI who recently revealed that he was Deep Throat, the famous secret source for Mr. Woodward and Carl Bernstein during the Watergate years.

I had read so many of the Internet articles that have surfaced since Deep Throat was revealed in May that I finally decided to go ahead and read the official account from Mr. Woodward himself. There was much in the book that I hadn’t known. For instance, I had no idea exactly how much memory loss Mr. Felt has experienced in recent years. I figured he must have faint memories left of what had transpired but had only lost some detail. According to The Secret Man, Mr. Felt barely remembers there even was a President Nixon much less the late night sleuthing in which he was involved with Mr. Woodward or, more importantly, his motivations for such sleuthing.

I thought the book also had some interesting information about Mark Felt’s responsibilities at the FBI during the Watergate years. The level of responsibility inherited by Mr. Felt is tremendous. I find it amazing he had the time and inclination to help as much with Mr. Woodward regarding Watergate as he did, given all of the various FBI tasks for which he was responsible at the time.

In the end, I am no less enthralled with the Deep Throat story than I was shortly after the secret was revealed. I have not yet read All The President’s Men or The Final Days. Maybe they’re next on the list.