Listen Legally to Best Full Audiobooks in History, American

Please open https://hotaudiobook.com ONLY on your standard browser Safari, Chrome, Microsoft or Firefox to download full audiobooks of your choice for free.

Title: The United States of Beer

Subtitle: A Freewheeling History of the All-American Drink

Author: Dane Huckelbridge

Narrator: Corey Snow

Format: Unabridged

Length: 6 hrs and 47 mins

Language: English

Release date: 06-14-16

Publisher: HarperAudio

Ratings: 4.5 of 5 out of 26 votes

Genres: History, American

Publisher's Summary:

From the author of Bourbon, "the definitive history" (Sacramento Bee), comes the rollicking and revealing story of beer in America, in the spirit of Salt or Cod.

In The United States of Beer, Dane Huckelbridge, the author of Bourbon: A History of the American Spirit - a Southern Independent Booksellers Alliance best seller - charts the surprisingly fascinating history of Americans' relationship with their most popular alcoholic beverage. Huckelbridge shows how beer has evolved along with the country - from a local and regional product (once upon a time, every American city had its own brewery and iconic beer brand) to the rise of global megabrands, like Budweiser and Miller, that are synonymous with US capitalism.

We learn of George Washington's failed attempt to brew beer at Mount Vernon with molasses instead of barley; of the 19th-century "beer barons", like Captain Frederick Pabst, Adolphus Busch, and Joseph Schlitz, who revolutionized commercial brewing and built lucrative empires - and the American immigrant experience; and of the advances in brewing and bottling technology that allowed beer to flow in the saloons of the Wild West. Throughout, Huckelbridge draws connections between seemingly remote fragments of the American past and shares his reports from the frontline of today's craft-brewing revolution.

Members Reviews:

History Humanized

I'm only a light social drinker, but this book was fun and engaging. History courses in school always come at a political angle. To understand the past through food and beverage was refreshing. The book covers the world just as much as the US. Highly recommended.

Please open https://hotaudiobook.com ONLY on your standard browser Safari, Chrome, Microsoft or Firefox to download full audiobooks of your choice for free.

Title: The Lynching

Subtitle: The Epic Courtroom Battle That Brought Down the Klan

Author: Laurence Leamer

Narrator: Malcolm Hillgartner

Format: Unabridged

Length: 10 hrs and 19 mins

Language: English

Release date: 06-07-16

Publisher: HarperAudio

Ratings: 4.5 of 5 out of 115 votes

Genres: History, American

Publisher's Summary:

The New York Times best-selling author of The Kennedy Women chronicles the powerful and spellbinding true story of a brutal race-based killing in 1981 and subsequent trials that undid one of the most pernicious organizations in American history - the Ku Klux Klan.

On a Friday night in March 1981, Henry Hays and James Knowles scoured the streets of Mobile in their car, hunting for a black man. The young men were members of Klavern 900 of the United Klans of America. They were seeking to retaliate after a largely black jury could not reach a verdict in a trial involving a black man accused of the murder of a white man.

The two Klansmen found 19-year-old Michael Donald walking home alone. Hays and Knowles abducted him, beat him, cut his throat, and left his body hanging from a tree branch in a racially mixed residential neighborhood. Arrested, charged, and convicted, Hays was sentenced to death - the first time in more than half a century that the state of Alabama sentenced a white man to death for killing a black man. On behalf of Michael's grieving mother, legendary civil rights lawyer and cofounder of the Southern Poverty Law Center Morris Dees filed a civil suit against the members of the local Klan unit involved and the UKA, the largest Klan organization. Charging them with conspiracy, Dees put the Klan on trial, resulting in a verdict that would level a deadly blow to its organization.

Based on numerous interviews and extensive archival research, The Lynching brings to life two dramatic trials, during which the Alabama Klan's motives and philosophy were exposed for the evil they represent. In addition to telling a gripping and consequential story, Laurence Leamer chronicles the KKK and its activities in the second half the 20th century and illuminates its lingering effect on race relations in America today.

Members Reviews:

Very Readable

The Lynching was not what I expected, which was a longer and possibly sensational court trial. Instead, it is a very readable history of the civil rights movement in Alabama. Yes, it reports the murder of an African-American teen in Mobile in the 1980's and how justice was finally accomplished and how that led to the demise of the Klan. It does so much more than that because it recounts the fear the white supremacists caused and the struggles of the movement in the 1960's, thus putting the murder in context. The reader can learn about George Wallace, Morris Dees, the Southern Poverty Law Center, the UKA, and more. Parts of this book reminded me of today's political environment. It may shed some light on the appeal of a certain kind of political machinations.

I would hope that those whose knowledge of this part of U.S. history is vague would turn to this book as a good way to become better informed. As racial tension still is with us, we owe it to our country and to each other to be well-informed about what has gone before us. This book is a rather painless way to learn for the book holds the reader's attention. The audio version is well narrated. I recommend it.

And Our Current Day Hatred Keeps This Scary

I just finished "The Lynching" in time for watching walls to be built, visas to be revoked, all because of our hatred and mistrust for The Other.

Please open https://hotaudiobook.com ONLY on your standard browser Safari, Chrome, Microsoft or Firefox to download full audiobooks of your choice for free.

Title: Rough Riders

Subtitle: Theodore Roosevelt, His Cowboy Regiment, and the Immortal Charge up San Juan Hill

Author: Mark Lee Gardner

Narrator: Danny Campbell

Format: Unabridged

Length: 9 hrs and 41 mins

Language: English

Release date: 05-10-16

Publisher: HarperAudio

Ratings: 4.5 of 5 out of 89 votes

Genres: History, American

Publisher's Summary:

The first definitive account of this legendary fighting force and its extraordinary leader, Theodore Roosevelt, Mark Lee Gardner's Rough Riders is narrative nonfiction at its most invigorating and compulsively listenable. Its dramatic unfolding of a familiar yet not fully known story will remind listeners of James Swanson's Manhunt.

Two months after the sinking of the USS Maine in Havana Harbor in February 1898, Congress authorized President McKinley to recruit a volunteer army to drive the Spaniards from Cuba. From this army emerged the legendary "Rough Riders", a mounted regiment drawn from America's western territories and led by the indomitable Theodore Roosevelt. Its ranks included not only cowboys and other Westerners but several Ivy Leaguers and clubmen, many of them friends of "TR". Roosevelt and his men quickly came to symbolize American ruggedness, daring, and individualism. He led them to victory in the famed Battle at San Juan Hill, which made TR a national hero and cemented the Rough Riders' place in history.

Now, Mark Lee Gardner synthesizes previously unknown primary accounts as well as period newspaper articles, letters, and diaries from public and private archives in Arizona, Texas, Oklahoma, New Mexico, Boston, and Washington, DC, to produce this authoritative chronicle. He breathes fresh life into the Rough Riders and pays tribute to their daring feats and indomitable leader. Gardner also explores lesser-known aspects of the story, including their relationship with the African American Buffalo Soldiers, with whom they fought side by side at San Juan Hill.

Rich with action, violence, camaraderie, and courage, Rough Riders sheds new light on the Theodore Roosevelt saga - and on one of the most thrilling chapters in American history.

The song "Uncle Cliff" was written and performed by Mark Gardner, copyright 1985.

Members Reviews:

Excellent and entertaining

Very enjoyable listen. It made me want to bring back words like bully and hoosah

A must listen

A fitting tribute to, and lesson in the history of the rough riders, the constant reading of names can wear a bit thin over time until you remember that these are in some cases the names of otherwise forgotten men. The performance is a bit flat but by the middle seems to fit with the book well. As a side, if this book doesn't make you sad at the state of the American presidency then you need to listen again, to think that the United States was once led by such a strong, honourable, hero and here we are with a lying, fraudulent C list reality tv star in the White House.

TR and the charge up the Santiago Heights

Rough Riders clears up many of the myths about the charge up the Santiago Heights. TR and all the men who taught up the heights deserve to be honored by our nation.

Truly wonderful book!

One of the best audiobooks I have listened to. Not because the audio quality was superb; it wasn't, the performance was though, and the story was as complete as they come. Download it and learn something that all Americans should know.

Outstanding in every way.

This is an excellent, exciting history of Teddy Roosevelt and the Rough Riders. One gets a glimpse of a time when men were men and cowardice was detested. It was also a time when the mainstream media was pro-American. This in itself is simply amazing.

Please open https://hotaudiobook.com ONLY on your standard browser Safari, Chrome, Microsoft or Firefox to download full audiobooks of your choice for free.

Title: Grant Takes Command

Author: Bruce Catton

Narrator: Kevin T. Collins

Format: Unabridged

Length: 25 hrs and 20 mins

Language: English

Release date: 05-04-16

Publisher: Audible Studios

Ratings: 4.5 of 5 out of 81 votes

Genres: History, American

Publisher's Summary:

A thrilling account of the final years of the War Between the States and the great general who led the Union to victory.

This conclusion of Pulitzer Prize-winning author Bruce Catton's acclaimed Civil War history of General Ulysses S. Grant begins in the summer of 1863. After Grant's bold and decisive triumph over the Confederate Army at Vicksburg - a victory that wrested control of the Mississippi River from Southern hands - President Abraham Lincoln promoted Grant to the head of the Army of the Potomac.

The newly named general was virtually unknown to the nation and to the Union's military high command, but he proved himself in the brutal closing year and a half of the War Between the States. Grant's strategic brilliance and unshakeable tenacity crushed the Confederacy in the battles of the Overland Campaign in Virginia and the Siege of Petersburg.

In the spring of 1865, Grant finally forced Robert E. Lee's surrender at Appomattox Court House, thus ending the bloodiest conflict on American soil. Although tragedy struck only days later when Lincoln - whom Grant called "incontestably the greatest man I have ever known" - was assassinated, Grant's military triumphs would ensure that the president's principles of unity and freedom would endure.

In Grant Takes Command, Catton offers listeners an in-depth portrait of an extraordinary warrior and unparalleled military strategist whose brilliant battlefield leadership saved an endangered Union.

Members Reviews:

Fantastic Writing, Poor Narration

Any additional comments?

The Narrator makes it difficult to listen to this masterpiece. That's unfortunate, but I powered through the constant mispronounced names and places because the story is gripping and the author is famous for his historical accuracy and masterful storytelling. That said, be warned that many of the Narrator's mistakes are cringeworthy.

Get the book - the paper version

Catton is superb as always, although this ranks slightly below his best work.

Regardless the forced and over acted narration ruins it. The narrator feigns an interest and knowledge that he so obviously does not possess. Perhaps one may be forgiven for being unable to pronounce the names of Generals Sigel and Meigs and even the city of Staunton, VA, but there's no excuse for mispronouncing the Battle of Chickamauga, the second bloodiest of the war, or the surname of General Patrick Cleburne, arguably the ablest division commander the war produced.

Rather than set forth more (and perhaps more egregious) examples I'll simply state here that I am mystified as to why one too lazy to pick up a dictionary would attempt to narrate a work of this caliber and why any sane adult would let him near a microphone.

Bruce Catton deserves a much better narrator.

Bruce Catton is my favorite Civil War author. Anything written by Mr. Catton is a work of art.

Narration is horrible

Would you recommend this book to a friend? Why or why not?

Would recommend buying the book, but NOT getting the audiobook. The narrator was terrible. See my remarks about his performance below.

What other book might you compare Grant Takes Command to and why?

Grant Moves South which is the second in the Grant series by Bruce Catton.

Please open https://hotaudiobook.com ONLY on your standard browser Safari, Chrome, Microsoft or Firefox to download full audiobooks of your choice for free.

Title: A Scientific Education

Subtitle: Essays from a Naturalist

Author: Thomas Henry Huxley

Narrator: Roland Sickenberger

Format: Unabridged

Length: 3 hrs and 49 mins

Language: English

Release date: 04-08-16

Publisher: MSAC Philosophy Group

Ratings: 4.5 of 5 out of 11 votes

Genres: History, American

Publisher's Summary:

This delightful and insightful series of essays on the practice of science was written by one of the great minds of the 19th century, Thomas Henry Huxley, a great friend and defender of Charles Darwin and his theory of evolution by natural selection. It includes Huxley's autobiography and essays covering improving natural knowledge; a liberal education; on a piece of chalk; the principle subjects of education; the method of scientific investigation; on the physical basis of life; and a postscript: a review of Huxley's life and work. Highly understandable and very pertinent in this age of doubt.

Members Reviews:

An interesting lecture

A collection of what, today, would be doctoral theses relating to natural history and it's study. He felt closer to mechanical engineering, but saw physiology as it's counterpart, and did tolerate the push into medicine. Following a tour as ship's surgeon, he was then pushed unhappily into paleontology with the Royal Society, and served in that capacity for 31 years. These essays arise from that service.

Roland Sickenberger did quite well in his narration of this rather dry material by providing the voice of an invested lecturer.

"This audiobook was provided by the author, narrator, or publisher at no cost in exchange for an unbiased review courtesy of AudiobookBOOM."

Fantastic early view of science

Wonderful travel back into the 1800's for a scientific view from one of the most famous naturalists. Wonderfully simple explanation of the scientific method and its daily used. Educates people on how their daily decisions and observations are extensions of the scientific method. Enjoyed it thoroughly. I received this audiobook from the author narrator or publisher for free via audiobookblast in exchange for an unbiased review

If you love Darwinism, you will love this book.

Is there anything you would change about this book?

It is an interesting read. I have almost finished it. It gives a glimpse into the spirit of the age which produced a Charles Darwin and his religion.

What do you think the narrator could have done better?

the narrator could have researched his pronunciations a little bit better, or spent more time editing, but not a bad listen.

Did A Scientific Education inspire you to do anything?

No

Any additional comments?

This audiobook was given by the author, narrator, or publisher at no cost in exchange for an unbiased review via Audiobook Boom.

A Really Neat Philosophical Book of Essays

ESSAYS FROM A NATURALIST was a terrific listen for those who love nature and even philosophy. THOMAS HENRY HUDSON was a friend and supporter of Darwin and his theory of evolution. I liked this book and found it insightful as it somewhat paralleled Darwin yet Huxley had his own ideas and theories it seemed. He pointed out several interesting points that in our everyday lives we perhaps don't even consider or think about. The part about chalk was neat as was the part about diatoms and radiolaria.

There was a lot of awesomeness in this audiobook. I love subjects such as this. I think many of Huxley's ideas were original as well as fascinating. A great listen.

ROLAND SICKENBERGER did a fine job narrating this book. He spoke clearly with a mild tone and good voice inflections in the right places. He was an asset to the narrative.

Please open https://hotaudiobook.com ONLY on your standard browser Safari, Chrome, Microsoft or Firefox to download full audiobooks of your choice for free.

Title: Conceived in Liberty

Author: Murray N. Rothbard

Narrator: Floy Lilley

Format: Unabridged

Length: 80 hrs and 21 mins

Language: English

Release date: 03-24-16

Publisher: Ludwig von Mises Institute

Ratings: 4.5 of 5 out of 18 votes

Genres: History, American

Publisher's Summary:

The new single-volume edition of Conceived in Liberty is here! After so many years of having to juggle four volumes, the Mises Institute has finally put it all together in a single book. This makes it easier to listen to and makes clearer just what a contribution this book is to the history of libertarian literature.

There's never been a better time to remember the revolutionary and even libertarian roots of the American founding, and there's no better guide to what this means in the narrative of the colonial period than Murray Rothbard. For anyone who thinks of Murray Rothbard as only an economic theorist or political thinker, this giant book is something of a surprise. It is probably his least known treatise. It offers a complete history of the colonial period of American history, a period lost to students today, who are led to believe American history begins with the US Constitution.

Rothbard's ambition was to shed new light on colonial history and show that the struggle for human liberty was the heart and soul of this land from its discovery through the culminating event of the American Revolution. These volumes are a tour de force, enough to establish Rothbard as one of the great American historians.

This book is a detailed narrative history of the struggle between liberty and power, as we might expect, but it is more. Rothbard offers a third alternative to the conventional interpretive devices. Against those on the right who see the American Revolution as a "conservative" event and those on the left who want to invoke it as some sort of protosocialist uprising, Rothbard views this period as a time of accelerating libertarian radicalism. Through this prism, Rothbard illuminates events as never before.

The volumes were brought out in the 1970s, but the odd timing and uneven distribution prevented any kind of large audience. They were beloved only by a few specialists, and sought after by many....

Members Reviews:

Learned more here than 4 yrs of college

It is an easy listen, quite entertaining and never dull. I've gone back and repeated chapters just to help with retention. At 80 hours, it is a tremendous value for just 1 credit. I have no regrets at all about downloading it. I've already talked my brother into purchasing it.

Great listening while I play golf.

I listened to this while working on projects around my house and while walking 18 holes of golf. I enjoyed it very much. I was surprised by the criticism of Ben Franklin and George Washington. A new perspective.

Please open https://hotaudiobook.com ONLY on your standard browser Safari, Chrome, Microsoft or Firefox to download full audiobooks of your choice for free.

Title: Agony and Eloquence

Subtitle: John Adams, Thomas Jefferson, and a World of Revolution

Author: Daniel L. Mallock

Narrator: Jonathan Yen

Format: Unabridged

Length: 14 hrs and 52 mins

Language: English

Release date: 02-10-16

Publisher: Audible Studios

Ratings: 3.5 of 5 out of 10 votes

Genres: History, American

Publisher's Summary:

The drama of John Adams and Thomas Jefferson is the foundational story of America - courage, loyalty, hope, fanaticism, greatness, failure, forgiveness, love. Agony and Eloquence is the story of the greatest friendship in American history and the revolutionary times in which it was made, ruined, and finally renewed.

In the wake of Washington's retirement, longtime friends Thomas Jefferson and John Adams came to represent the opposing political forces struggling to shape America's future. Adams' victory in the presidential election of 1796 brought Jefferson into his administration - but as an unlikely and deeply conflicted vice president. The bloody Republican revolution in France finally brought their political differences to a bitter pitch.

In Mallock's take on this fascinating period, French foreign policy and revolutionary developments - from the fall of the Bastille to the fall of the Jacobins and the rise of Napoleon - form a disturbing and illuminating counterpoint to events, controversies, individuals, and relationships in Philadelphia and Washington. Many important and fascinating people appear in the book, including Thomas Paine, Camille Desmoulins, Dr. Benjamin Rush, Tobias Lear, Talleyrand, Robespierre, Danton, Saint-Just, Abigail Adams, Lafayette, James Madison, John Quincy Adams, Dr. Joseph Priestley, Samuel Adams, Philip Mazzei, John Marshall, Alexander Hamilton, and Edward Coles. They are brought to life by Mallock's insightful analysis and clear and lively writing.

Agony and Eloquence is a thoroughly researched and tautly written modern history. When the most important thing is at stake, almost anything can be justified.

Members Reviews:

Great minds (sometimes) think alike

In Agony and Eloquence Daniel Mallock illuminates the decades-long relationship between two of our founding fathers, one that would rise and fall in its friendship but never in its mutual respect. He provides context for their political and societal disagreements by providing essential descriptions of the world in transition in which they lived. One might expect Mr. Mallock to favor Mr. Adams in his critique as they are both natives of Quincy, yet his approach is even-handed, showing the finery and faults of each of these great men. This book is quite an accomplishment, and I look forward to the author's next endeavor.

Rise, fall, and rebirth of friendship between two revolutionary titans

The focus of this book is the friendship between John Adams and Thomas Jefferson, the decline of that friendship, and its recurrence due to the efforts of Dr. Benjamin Rush after Jefferson's presidency ended.The book reads well and is to the point. Other books, of course, have dealt, in one way or another, with the friendship explored here.

But that is the focus of this work--not one part of a longer work on Jefferson or Adams. They came to know one another as the colonies' relationship with British Empire began to worsen dramatically. They worked together in the Continental Congress and served on the committee to draft a rationale for breaking ties with the Empire and declaring independence.

Their friendship deepened as they served abroad in a diplomatic assignment. Too, Abigail Adams, John's wife, became friends with Jefferson--who reciprocated. However, as the book details, politics undid the friendship.

Listen to this audiobook free with a 30-day trial. Go to http://hotaudiobook.com/free

Title: Dead Presidents

Subtitle: An American Adventure into the Strange Deaths and Surprising Afterlives of Our Nation's Leaders

Author: Brady Carlson

Narrator: Tom Zingarelli

Format: Unabridged

Length: 8 hrs and 1 min

Language: English

Release date: 02-01-16

Publisher: HighBridge, a division of Recorded Books

Ratings: 4.5 of 5 out of 64 votes

Genres: History, American

Publisher's Summary:

In Dead Presidents, NPR host Brady Carlson takes listeners to presidential gravesites, monuments, and memorials to tell the death stories of our greatest leaders. Mixing biography and travelogue, Carlson explores whether William Henry Harrison really died of a cold, why Zachary Taylor's remains were exhumed 140 years after his death, and how what killed James A. Garfield wasn't an assassin's bullet. He tells the surprising stories of the Washington Monument, Mount Rushmore, and Grant's Tomb. And he explains why "Hooverball" is still played in Iowa, why Millard Fillmore's final resting place is beside that of funk legend Rick James, and why Ohio and Alaska continue to battle over the name of Mt. McKinley.

With an eye for neglected places and offbeat people reminiscent of Tony Horwitz and Sarah Vowell, Carlson shows that the ways we memorialize our presidents reveal as much about us as about the men themselves.

Contact me for any questions: [email protected]

Listen to this audiobook free with a 30-day trial. Go to http://hotaudiobook.com/free

Title: Mourning Lincoln

Author: Martha Hodes

Narrator: Donna Postel

Format: Unabridged

Length: 12 hrs and 27 mins

Language: English

Release date: 12-08-15

Publisher: HighBridge, a Division of Recorded Books

Ratings: 4 of 5 out of 6 votes

Genres: History, American

Publisher's Summary:

Through deep and thoughtful exploration of diaries, letters, and other personal writings penned during the spring and summer of 1865, Martha Hodes, one of our finest historians, captures the full range of reactions to the president's death - far more diverse than public expressions would suggest. She tells a story of shock, glee, sorrow, anger, blame, and fear.

"'Tis the saddest day in our history," wrote a mournful man. It was "an electric shock to my soul", wrote a woman who had escaped from slavery. "Glorious News!" a Lincoln enemy exulted. "Old Lincoln is dead, and I will kill the goddamned Negroes now", an angry white Southerner ranted. For the black soldiers of the 54th Massachusetts, it was all "too overwhelming, too lamentable, too distressing" to absorb.

There are many surprises in the story Hodes tells, not least the way in which even those utterly devastated by Lincoln's demise easily interrupted their mourning rituals to attend to the most mundane aspects of everyday life. There is also the unexpected and unabated virulence of Lincoln's Northern critics and the way Confederates simultaneously celebrated Lincoln's death and instantly - on the very day he died - cast him as a fallen friend to the defeated white South.

Hodes brings to life a key moment of national uncertainty and confusion, when competing visions of America's future proved irreconcilable and hopes for racial justice in the aftermath of the Civil War slipped from the nation's grasp. Hodes masterfully brings the tragedy of Lincoln's assassination alive in human terms - terms that continue to stagger and rivet us 150 years after the event they so strikingly describe.

Critic Reviews:

"Beautiful and terrible, Hodes' marvelously written story of the assassination fills the mind, heart and soul. People never forgot the event; this book is a page-turner that makes it all unforgettable again as it also explains how one shocking death illuminated so many others." (David W. Blight, author of Race and Reunion: The Civil War in American Memory)

"There are many books on the Lincoln assassination and the public response to it. But Martha Hodes' work is the first to focus in great detail on the responses of ordinary individuals, Northern and Southern, white and black, soldiers and civilians, women and men, in their diaries and personal correspondence, and to blend such response into the larger story of public events. The amount of research is simply staggering. This is a highly original, lucidly written, book." (James M. McPherson, author of Battle Cry of Freedom)

"Mourning Lincoln is an original and important book that traces various reactions to Lincoln's assassination. Through extensive research, Martha Hodes has discovered voices that are both moving and surprising. The result is an illuminating work that allows us for the first time to understand fully the meaning of Lincoln's death at the time." (Louis P. Masur, author of Lincoln's Hundred Days)

Contact me for any questions: [email protected]

Please open https://hotaudiobook.com ONLY on your standard browser Safari, Chrome, Microsoft or Firefox to download full audiobooks of your choice for free.

Title: Tobacco

Subtitle: A Cultural History of How an Exotic Plant Seduced Civilization

Author: Iain Gately

Narrator: Christopher Grove

Format: Unabridged

Length: 12 hrs and 35 mins

Language: English

Release date: 08-13-15

Publisher: Audible Studios

Ratings: 4.5 of 5 out of 69 votes

Genres: History, American

Publisher's Summary:

Tobacco was first cultivated and enjoyed by the indigenous inhabitants of the Americas, who used it for medicinal, religious, and social purposes long before the arrival of Columbus. But when Europeans began to colonize the American continents, it became something else entirely - a cultural touchstone of pleasure and success and a coveted commodity that would transform the world economy forever. Iain Gately's Tobacco tells the epic story of an unusual plant and its unique relationship with the history of humanity, from its obscure ancient beginnings through its rise to global prominence to its current embattled state today. In a lively narrative, Gately makes the case for the tobacco trade being the driving force behind the growth of the American colonies, the foundation of Dutch trading empire, the underpinning cause of the African slave trade, and the financial basis for our victory in the American Revolution. Informed and erudite, Tobacco is a vivid and provocative look into the complex history of this precious plant.

Members Reviews:

interesting

I've never had much interest in cigarettes or tobacco until listening to this book. The history of this plant is beyond anything I would have thought of. a must read. narrated very well.

Comprehensive, entertaining and informative.

This presentation was fun to listen. The author displayed nice organization and the narrator did a fine job.

Great history about tobacco.

Great book, I enjoyed a lot, the only pitfall it focus to much in England tobacco history

Informative

Although I'm not a smoker, I do know a lot of smokers who would appreciate this book for different reasons than I would. In general, this audiobook explores the addiction to tobacco in all its varieties and its use in the past in rituals and as hallucinogenics. Overall an interesting read, but do not give it to your smoker friends if you want them to quit.