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Title: Men of War

Subtitle: The American Soldier in Combat at Bunker Hill, Gettysburg, and Iwo Jima

Author: Alexander Rose

Narrator: David Marantz

Format: Unabridged

Length: 14 hrs and 29 mins

Language: English

Release date: 10-20-15

Publisher: Audible Studios

Ratings: 4.5 of 5 out of 28 votes

Genres: History, American

Publisher's Summary:

In the grand tradition of John Keegan's enduring classic The Face of Battle comes a searing, unforgettable chronicle of war through the eyes of the American soldiers who fought in three of our most iconic battles: Bunker Hill, Gettysburg, and Iwo Jima.

This is not a book about how great generals won their battles, nor is it a study in grand strategy. Men of War is instead a riveting, visceral, and astonishingly original look at ordinary soldiers under fire. Drawing on an immense range of firsthand sources from the battlefield, Alexander Rose begins by re-creating the lost and alien world of 18th-century warfare at Bunker Hill, the bloodiest clash of the War of Independence - and reveals why the American militiamen were so lethally effective against the oncoming waves of British troops. Then, focusing on Gettysburg, Rose describes a typical Civil War infantry action, vividly explaining what Union and Confederate soldiers experienced before, during, and after combat. Finally, he shows how in 1945 the marine corps hurled itself with the greatest possible violence at the island of Iwo Jima, where nearly a third of all marines killed in World War II would die.

As Rose demonstrates, the most important factor in any battle is the human one: At Bunker Hill, Gettysburg, and Iwo Jima, the American soldier, as much as any general, proved decisive. To an unprecedented degree, Men of War brings home the reality of combat and, just as important, its aftermath in the form of the psychological and medical effects on veterans. As such, the book makes a critical contribution to military history by narrowing the colossal gulf between the popular understanding of wars and the experiences of the soldiers who fight them.

Cover design by Carlos BeltránCover photograph courtesy of The National Archives.

Critic Reviews:

"A worthy successor to The Face of Battle, telling the stories of three famous American battles that were fought in three very different technological eras.... This is indeed war up-close, as those who fought it lived it - and survived it if they could. Men of War is deeply researched, beautifully written. It is military history at its best." (The Wall Street Journal)

A highly recommended addition to the literature of military history.... Rose builds up a detailed picture of each of these battles, sparing few gritty details and romanticizing almost nothing. He writes vividly and memorably, with a good eye for the telling detail or anecdote as well as big-picture perspectives. (Kirkus Reviews)

Roses grim, unadorned, yet immensely readable look at battle is a dose of what real war is like, and a good balance to the more common sanitized military history fare. (Publishers Weekly)

Members Reviews:

My Review

As a Marine Corps Veteran of the Vietnam War who survived the Battle Of Dai Do, I can understand a little bit better how combat has affected my life. The author is quite right, war is not glamorous, but it is vicious, savage and horrible. It is regrettable that as long as there are two human beings on this planet there will surely be wars. The author brings home with accurate details the insanity of war on a level to those who have not experienced combat. Reminding me of the phrase, "for those who fought for it, freedom has a flavor the protected will never know. I highly recommend this book.

Excellent

Though a little gory...

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Title: Drinking in America

Subtitle: Our Secret History

Author: Susan Cheever

Narrator: Barbara Benjamin Creel

Format: Unabridged

Length: 9 hrs and 1 min

Language: English

Release date: 10-15-15

Publisher: Hachette Audio

Ratings: 3.5 of 5 out of 48 votes

Genres: History, American

Publisher's Summary:

In Drinking in America, best-selling author Susan Cheever chronicles our national love affair with liquor, taking a long, thoughtful look at the way alcohol has changed our nation's history. This is the often-overlooked story of how alcohol has shaped American events and the American character from the 17th to the 20th century.

Seen through the lens of alcoholism, American history takes on a vibrancy and a tragedy missing from many earlier accounts. From the drunkenness of the Pilgrims to Prohibition hijinks, drinking has always been a cherished American custom: a way to celebrate and a way to grieve and a way to take the edge off. At many pivotal points in our history - the illegal Mayflower landing at Cape Cod, the enslavement of African Americans, the McCarthy witch hunts, and the Kennedy assassination, to name only a few - alcohol has acted as a catalyst.

Some nations drink more than we do, some drink less, but no other nation has been the drunkest in the world, as America was in the 1830s, only to outlaw drinking entirely a hundred years later. Both a lively history and an unflinching cultural investigation, Drinking in America unveils the volatile ambivalence within one nation's tumultuous affair with alcohol.

Members Reviews:

Enlightening

I was unaware of the part drinking has played in the history of the United States - I am not sure it was as influential as the author declares, but I learned much from her account.

Better research needed

What could have made this a 4 or 5-star listening experience for you?

More in-depth research. Was really into the book until a line in the book turned me off entirely. There was a comment made about Thomas Meager falling off a boat and drowning because he was drunk. There is no decisive proof that this was the situation and there were other factors that may have been at play. He indeed may have been drunk, but there is speculation that he may have been ill or he may have been murdered by enemies who were aboard the same boat. The cause of his death has never been clearly determined. For Ms. Cheever to unequivocally state that he was drunk and fell off the boat to his death made me question every fact she included in her story and this damaged her credibility with me. I can't even finish the book because I do not know what to believe and what not to believe.

Further, Ms. Cheever's story reads like a law school exam. Very thoughtful and meticulous for the first part of the book, then everything else is dumped in the pages in a fitful and purging manner. A large portion of the book is spent on the Adams family and then mere paragraphs are spent on the seemingly unimportant events in history such as the Civil War. It is as if Ms. Cheever realized she was running out of time and because of this the story bounced around like crazy to the point where it became hard to follow.

Has Drinking in America turned you off from other books in this genre?

Not at all.

Which character as performed by Barbara Benjamin Creel was your favorite?

John Chapman

What character would you cut from Drinking in America?

Thomas Meagher

Any additional comments?

Go back and do the research more fully before branding historical figures as alcoholics. Back up what is stated with all the facts and not mere speculation. This book had the potential to be fabulous.

Some Interesting Moments, Ultimately Falls Short

I wanted to like this book.

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Title: Galveston: A History and a Guide

Subtitle: Fred Rider Cotten Popular History Series

Author: David McComb

Narrator: Caroline Miller

Format: Unabridged

Length: 1 hr and 4 mins

Language: English

Release date: 09-01-15

Publisher: Texas State Historical Assn.

Genres: History, American

Publisher's Summary:

Indians! Pirates! Rebels! Blockade runners! Smugglers! Murder! Beaches! Beauty contests! Hurricanes!

These are all parts of the colorful history of an island city that once called itself The Free State of Galveston. Located at a natural harbor on the northeastern part of a 30-mile-long sand barrier island, the city dates its beginning to the end of the Texas Revolution. Before then the harbor had attracted Jean Lafitte, a pirate from Louisiana, and the revolutionary Texan government fleeing in front of the attack of Santa Anna's Mexican army.

After independence in 1836, Michel B. Menard, along with nine associates, bought the harbor property and founded the town. Galveston grew on the strength of the harbor - the best between New Orleans and Veracruz - and the city became a major entry point for immigrants to Texas. During the Civil War, it was a haven for Confederate blockade runners and the site of one of the major battles of the war in Texas. Afterward it was a center for occupation forces and the point from which Major-General Gordon Granger announced the emancipation of Texas' slaves on June 19, 1865 (Juneteenth Day). The city later became a major cotton port for the Southwest and the location of the University of Texas Medical School.

Members Reviews:

Fair overview of the history of Galveston

David McComb's book "Galveston" is a short 51-pg read about the history of Galveston island, ideal for someone looking for some quick history to read while waiting for an oil change (or a kid doing a school book report on a Texas locale). As a Texas history novice I found this work succinct in the details of the the history of this island, and the book included plenty of black and white images to go with the account. It describes the early history of this island, including the visits of the Karankawa indians to the empty and rattlesnake-infested land, the explorations of Spaniard Cabeza de Vaca, the exploits of pirate Jean Laffite, leading all the way up to the eventual land distribution and sale in the 19th century. We learn about the impact of the civil war on Galveston, as well as the destructive hurricane of 1900 in an era before modern weather forecasting that left vast destruction and thousands dead.

McComb describes the transitions in the 20th century that saw Galveston transforming into more of a tourist location (although interestingly no mention of the more iconic tourist traps like Moody Gardens and Schlitterbahn, etc). This was a good quick read about some of the background and history of Galveston Island.

Brief look at a great city

The book is short, and $10 is way too much to pay for it. Still, if you can find a used copy, it does provide solid facts about events and people from Galveston's colorful past. Cabeza de Vaca, Karankawa Indians, Michael B. Menard, Jean Laffite, The Bolivar Ferry, the Galveston harbor, William L. Moody, Battle of Galveston (civil war), 1900 Hurricane, the seawall, the raising if Galveston Island, the Maceo crime family, Prohibition and various tourist attractions are briefly touched on. There are several black and white photographs, including maps and an interesting "then and now" section about historical landmarks.

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Title: Wicked Women

Subtitle: Notorious, Mischievous, and Wayward Ladies from the Old West

Author: Chris Enss

Narrator: Kirsten Potter

Format: Unabridged

Length: 6 hrs and 42 mins

Language: English

Release date: 08-11-15

Publisher: Tantor Audio

Ratings: 4.5 of 5 out of 18 votes

Genres: History, American

Publisher's Summary:

This collection of short, action-filled stories of the Old West's most egregiously badly behaved female outlaws, gamblers, soiled doves, and other wicked women offers a glimpse into the Western women's experience that's less sunbonnets and more six-shooters. During the late 1800s, while men were settling the new frontier and rushing off to the latest boomtowns, women of easy virtue found wicked lives west of the Mississippi when they followed fortune hunters seeking gold and land in an unsettled territory. Prostitutes and female gamblers hoped to capitalize on the vices of the intrepid pioneers. Pulling together stories of ladies caught in the acts of mayhem, distraction, murder, and highway robbery, Wicked Women includes famous names like Belle Starr and Big Nose Kate as well as lesser known characters.

Members Reviews:

Strong Women Out West

If you could sum up Wicked Women in three words, what would they be?

Fascinating, Daring, Informative.

Who was your favorite character and why?

No favorite. All of the ladies were special.

Which scene was your favorite?

The scene where the madam shoots her lover one night, misses, then shoots him the next.

Did you have an extreme reaction to this book? Did it make you laugh or cry?

No.

Any additional comments?

Fun read.

Brave Women of the West

I loved this book. It was very well performed and was very entertaining. The book basically is several short venuettes of different women known in the West from about 1870 until 1920. Several are orphans or young women with no education; they are all smart, resilient, and creative. It left me wondering how would I survive given the same circumstances. It would be a great read for womens studies. Read it; you wont be disappointed!

Good but certain mispronunciations were annoying

If you could sum up Wicked Women in three words, what would they be?

Prostitution, Gambling, Suicide

What did you like best about this story?

It gave a viewpoint that prostitution and gambling were the few alternatives for independently minded females, either by choice or circumstances, in the historical western U.S.A.

Did Kirsten Potter do a good job differentiating all the characters? How?

She seemed to mostly portray the women, as if they were all Mae West imitations. Being raised in Nevada, it was like nails on a chalkboard for the constant mispronouncing of "Nevada." To perform a historical audiobook, it would seem that pronouncing names improperly takes away from the credibility of the information.

Did you have an extreme reaction to this book? Did it make you laugh or cry?

No.

Any additional comments?

It felt a bit like almost the same stories over and over again. Prostitution and or gambling into suicide or death in old age... over and over again...

Absolutely loved this audiobook

This was very entertaining and very informative, narration was also terrific! I loved hearing about the women that helped shape the wild west. Not sure women of today could have handled life out west (we're rather spoiled) the way these amazing women did and had to do just to survive - great read, great history lesson. Def Nigel's recommend for history buffs and those that love westerns and story's about love and life as a woman in the late 1800's

More

I wish there had more: more information about the women, more women to include in the book.

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Title: Lost Mines and Buried Treasures of Oklahoma

Author: W. C. Jameson

Narrator: Bob Rundell

Format: Unabridged

Length: 3 hrs and 42 mins

Language: English

Release date: 07-20-15

Publisher: Progreso Publishing Group, LLC

Ratings: 4.5 of 5 out of 3 votes

Genres: History, American

Publisher's Summary:

The numerous tales and legends related to lost mines and buried treasures in Oklahoma are often supported by documentation. The stories included in this book are most compelling because they offer chances of recovery. Though obscured by the passage of many decades since they were originally hidden or lost, these elusive treasures nevertheless continue to tempt the adventurous, the committed, the passionate.

Members Reviews:

informative

my 8 year old son and I listened to it on a road trip, now he wants to go treasure hunting. he loved it, fun story for all ages, IMHO!

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Title: Enabling Acts

Subtitle: The Hidden Story of How the Americans With Disabilities Act Gave the Largest US Minority Its Rights

Author: Lennard Davis

Narrator: Kevin Stillwell

Format: Unabridged

Length: 10 hrs and 55 mins

Language: English

Release date: 07-14-15

Publisher: Audible Studios

Ratings: 5 of 5 out of 12 votes

Genres: History, American

Publisher's Summary:

The first significant book on the history and impact of the ADA - the "eyes on the prize" moment for disability rights.

The Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) is the widest-ranging and most comprehensive piece of civil rights legislation ever passed in the United States, and it has become the model for disability-based laws around the world. Yet the surprising story behind how the bill came to be is little known.

In this riveting account, acclaimed disability scholar Lennard J. Davis delivers the first behind-the-scenes and on-the-ground narrative of how a band of leftist Berkeley hippies managed to make an alliance with upper-crust, conservative Republicans to bring about a truly bipartisan bill. Based on extensive interviews with all the major players involved, including legislators and activists, Davis recreates the dramatic tension of a story that is anything but a dry account of bills and speeches. Rather, it's filled with one indefatigable character after another, culminating in explosive moments when the hidden army of the disability community stages scenes like the iconic Capitol Crawl or an event some describe as "deaf Selma", when students stormed Gallaudet University demanding a "deaf president now!"

From inside the offices of newly formed disability groups to secret breakfast meetings surreptitiously held outside the White House grounds, here we meet countless unsung characters, including political heavyweights and disability advocates on the front lines. "You want to fight?" an angered Ted Kennedy would shout in an upstairs room at the Capitol while negotiating the final details of the ADA. Congressman Tony Coelho, whose parents once thought him to be possessed by the devil because of his epilepsy, later became the bill's primary sponsor.

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Title: From Winchester to Cedar Creek

Subtitle: The Shenandoah Campaign of 1864

Author: Jeffry Wert

Narrator: Trent R. Stephens

Format: Unabridged

Length: 13 hrs and 18 mins

Language: English

Release date: 07-08-15

Publisher: University Press Audiobooks

Ratings: 4 of 5 out of 15 votes

Genres: History, American

Publisher's Summary:

In the Shenandoah Valley campaign of 1864, US Major General Philip H. Sheridan led his army to a series of decisive victories for the Union over Lieutenant General Jubal A. Early and the Confederate Army of the Valley. In From Winchester to Cedar Creek, author Jeffry D. Wert highlights Sheridan's victories in the critical area of the Virginia valley as defining moments of the Civil War. Sheridan's campaign ensured Confederate defeat in Virginia and ultimately contributed to Lincoln's reelection and the Union's victory in the Civil War.

Drawing on manuscript collections and many published sources, Wert offers vivid descriptions of the battles of Third Winchester, Fisher's Hill, Tom's Brook, and Cedar Creek. The book also explores how the interplay of the strengths and weaknesses of the Union and Confederate commanders, Sheridan and Early, resulted in victories for Sheridan's Army of the Shenandoah. Grounded in detailed research, Wert's compelling narrative portrays the military strategies these commanders employed and how their tactical decisions impacted civilian sacrifice in the valley.

First published in 1987, Wert's chronicle remains the definitive book on Sheridan's command and the Shenandoah Campaign of 1864. Offering a balanced treatment of both Union and Confederate experiences during the campaign, Wert emphasizes its importance as a turning point in the war from both military and civilian points of view.

From Winchester to Cedar Creek not only documents and dynamically recounts the events that unfolded in the summer and fall of 1864 in the Virginia valley, but it also details the political, strategic, and tactical forces that made the Shenandoah Valley campaign so important to the outcome of the Civil War.

The book is published by University of Texas Press.

Members Reviews:

The story of Early's tenacious retreat from the Shenandoah

In From Winchester to Cedar Creek: The Shenandoah Campaign of 1864, Jeffry D. Wert charts Union General Philip Sheridanâs victory over Confederate General Jubal Early in Virginiaâs Shenandoah Valley during the closing months of the American Civil War. Sheridanâs campaign ensured Confederate defeat in Virginia and ultimately contributed to President Abraham Lincolnâs reelection. Drawing on manuscript collections and many published sources, Wert offers vivid descriptions of the battles of Third Winchester, Fisherâs Hill, Tomâs Brook, and Cedar Creek.

First published in 1987, From Winchester to Cedar Creek explores how interplay of the strengths and weaknesses of the Union and Confederate commanders, Sheridan and Early, resulted in victories for Sheridanâs Army of the Shenandoah. It not only documents and dynamically recounts these events, but it also details the political, strategic, and tactical forces that made the 1864 Shenandoah Valley Campaign so important to the outcome of the Civil War.

As Philip Sheridanâs star rose, Jubal Earlyâs fell. In June 1864, Confederate General Robert E. Lee sent Early and approximately 15,000 men up the Shenandoah Valley to clear Union troops from the area and menace Washington, D.C., in an effort to repeat Thomas âStonewallâ Jacksonâs successes in 1862. Early, however, was no Jackson. Despite early success, by August he was on the defensive. General Ulysses S.

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Title: The Greatest Civil War Battles

Subtitle: The Battle of Stones River (Murfreesboro)

Author: Charles River Editors

Narrator: Chris Abell

Format: Unabridged

Length: 1 hr and 1 min

Language: English

Release date: 07-07-15

Publisher: Charles River Editors

Ratings: 3 of 5 out of 2 votes

Genres: History, American

Publisher's Summary:

"In all, 58 pieces of artillery played upon the enemy. Not less than 100 shots per minute were fired. As the mass of men swarmed down the slope they were mowed down by the score. Confederates were pinioned to the earth by falling branches." - G. C. Kniffin, aide to General Crittenden

Americans have long been fascinated by the Civil War and its biggest battles, particularly Gettysburg, Antietam, and Shiloh, all of which involved Robert E. Lee or Ulysses S. Grant. But one of the six biggest battles of the war, and the one that took the heaviest toll by percent on both armies was fought at the end of 1862 in Tennessee, and it involved neither of those generals.

In late December 1862, William Rosecrans' Union Army of the Cumberland was contesting Middle Tennessee against Braxton Bragg's Army of Tennessee, and for three days the two armies savaged each other as Bragg threw his army at Rosecrans in a series of desperate assaults. Bragg's army was unable to dislodge the Union army, and he eventually withdrew his army after learning that Rosecrans was on the verge of receiving reinforcements. Though the battle was stalemated, the fact that the Union army was left in possession of the field allowed Rosecrans to declare victory and embarrassed Bragg.

Though Stones River is mostly overlooked as a Civil War battle today, it had a decisive impact on the war. The two armies had both suffered nearly 33% casualties, an astounding number in 1862 that also ensured Rosecrans would not start another offensive campaign in Tennessee until the following June. The Union victory also ensured control of Nashville, Middle Tennessee, and Kentucky for the rest of the war.

Members Reviews:

Five Stars

Loved it

A good book.

This book is a good description of the battle. I like the authors quoting from the reports of the participants. The maps provided were helpful in understanding the events. For a short book it accomplishes the task of telling the tale.

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Title: Mint Condition

Subtitle: How Baseball Cards Became an American Obsession

Author: Dave Jamieson

Narrator: Kevin Young

Format: Unabridged

Length: 9 hrs and 26 mins

Language: English

Release date: 07-06-15

Publisher: Audible Studios

Ratings: 4.5 of 5 out of 22 votes

Genres: History, American

Publisher's Summary:

When award-winning journalist Dave Jamieson's parents sold his childhood home a few years ago, he rediscovered a prized boyhood possession: his baseball card collection. Now was the time to cash in on the investments of his youth. But all the card shops had closed, and cards were selling for next to nothing online. What had happened?

In Mint Condition, his fascinating, eye-opening, endlessly entertaining book, Jamieson finds the answer by tracing the complete story of this beloved piece of American childhood. Picture cards had long been used for advertising, but after the Civil War, tobacco companies started slipping them into cigarette packs as collector's items. Before long the cards were wagging the cigarettes. In the 1930s cards helped gum and candy makers survive the Great Depression. In the 1960s royalties from cards helped transform the baseball players' association into one of the country's most powerful unions, dramatically altering the game. In the '80s and '90s, cards went through a spectacular bubble, becoming a billion-dollar-a-year industry before all but disappearing, surviving today as the rarified preserve of adult collectors. Mint Condition is charming original history brimming with colorful characters, sure to delight baseball fans and collectors.

Members Reviews:

Great Book

I am almost finished with this book, and so far it has been great. Gives an accurate account of the history of Baseball cards, and as a new collector it is very interesting. I would definitely recommend it to a baseball fan or even just a regular sports fan.

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Title: The Great Divorce

Subtitle: A Nineteenth-Century Mother's Extraordinary Fight Against Her Husband, the Shakers, and Her Times

Author: Ilyon Woo

Narrator: Suzanne Toren

Format: Unabridged

Length: 10 hrs and 48 mins

Language: English

Release date: 07-06-15

Publisher: Audible Studios

Ratings: 4 of 5 out of 6 votes

Genres: History, American

Publisher's Summary:

Ilyon Woo's The Great Divorce is the dramatic, richly textured story of one of 19th-century America's most infamous divorce cases, in which a young mother singlehandedly challenged her country's notions of women's rights, family, and marriage itself.

In 1814 Eunice Chapman came home to discover that her three children had been carried off by her estranged husband. He had taken them, she learned, to live among a celibate, religious people known as the Shakers. Defying all expectations, this famously petite and lovely woman mounted an epic campaign against her husband, the Shakers, and the law. In its confrontation of some of the nation's most fundamental debates - religious freedom, feminine virtue, the sanctity of marriage - her case struck a nerve with an uncertain new republic. And its culmination - in a stunning legislative decision and a terrifying mob attack - sent shockwaves through the Shaker community and the nation beyond.

With a novelist's eye and a historian's perspective, Woo delivers the first full account of Eunice Chapman's remarkable struggle. A moving story about the power of a mother's love, The Great Divorce is also a memorable portrait of a rousing challenge to the values of a young nation.

Members Reviews:

Fantastic read!

I am a history junkie. I especially enjoy works that give a rich, full flavor of a time as well as presenting different views of the same event. This book delivers nicely on both counts, relating the atmosphere in New York State and the country in the early 1800's, especially in regards to religion, the condition of women, and women's rights. The centerpiece is one womans battle to regain her children, who had been spirited away by her husband. At a time when a woman had little recourse against those that harmed or mistreated her, Eunice Chapmans battle was an amazing one. What could have been a small family drama escalated into a war that caught up politicians, lawyers, the Shaker religion and such luminaries as Martin Van Buren and Thomas Jefferson.

All that aside, the author makes the book highly accessible to the reader, writing in an engaging style that makes this a page-turning historical mystery. It is just plain great storytelling!

Historical masterpiece

A deceptively easy read, but thought provoking. One almost immediately sympathizes with both Eunice and her husband James, if for different reasons. Opens a window on early 19th century life in America. Unlike similar works that strive to be scholarly and pretentious, this is a good old fashioned story that happens to be true.

Reads like a novel

Reads like a novel...very well written and researched...lots of history of the times as well as the Shaker sects. EXCELLENT.

a riveting, fact-filled, unbiased story

Ilyon Woo tells the story of Eunice Chapman, who fought to regain custody of her children and some control of her own fate, when her husband joined the Shakers in the early 1800s in New York state.

Woo presents her detailed research into the Shaker communities and the life of the Chapman family in a readable, riveting story. Her prose is always grounded in fact and the footnotes are available for checking her sources.

Woo was able to present both sides of the conflict evenly and fairly.