New Reviews: History

Listeners will be struck by author Bell's polished British accent as he narrates this history of America's Revolution. Bell looks at non-patriots, British loyalists, Hessians who fought for the British, and French who fought for the Americans, as well as how the Revolution impacted the outside world--in Jamaica and Gibraltar, and in Britain itself. George Washington is a... Read More

Carpenters and landlords stand alongside playwrights and actors in this lively audiobook history of London's first commercial theaters. The very first, The Theater, opened in 1576, and its history chronicles the birth of British theater. Renaissance scholar Swift works from scraps--leases, lawsuits, lumber prices, apprenticeship figures, plague deaths, and the names of actor... Read More

Erin Bennett narrates this unknown story of World War II intrigue that could be straight out of Ripley's Believe It Or Not! Listeners hear how a half-Jewish woman from a prominent Berlin family, Ruth Kuehn, had an affair with Joseph Goebbels. Rather than having her murdered, he sent her and her entire family to live in Honolulu. There the family established a spy network and... Read More

Tim Campbell's sonorous voice is a splendid match for Wellerstein's account of the decision to drop the atomic bombs on Japan in 1945. Wellerstein, a scholar of the history of nuclear weapons and the creator of the website NUKEMAP, delves deep into American nuclear policy. His conclusion is that President Harry S. Truman was almost entirely out of the decision loop. After the... Read More

Ari Fliakos' skillful narration reflects the tone of this audiobook: serious, intentional, and thought provoking. The national discourse about who best represents the current voting electorate typically oversimplies the geography, looking at it as "red states" and "blue states." But Woodard's research reveals a different kind of cultural history and understanding of what it... Read More

Kevin R. Free highlights the narrative throughline of this detailed history. Listeners may not be familiar with Charles Garland, but the fund he established in the early 1920s continues to have an impact on American society. When Garland determined that his substantial inheritance should be used to strengthen society through major social causes, the result was initiatives like... Read More

Kristin Atherton is the absolute right choice to narrate this riveting and complex history of the rise of global terrorism. The research provided here is ambitious, providing a clear-eyed, deeply considered history of the nature of terrorist acts, the motivations for which were hard for news broadcasts of the 1970s to fully capture. Atherton's narration never wavers as Burke... Read More

World War II buffs won't be disappointed as narrator John Hopkins capably delivers this account of the British landing on the easternmost beach of the Normandy Invasion in June 1944. Hastings, a well-known British military historian, switches from his usual mile-high view of events to a ground-level view. He gives splendid descriptions of the preparations for the landing, the... Read More

This epic audio history traces the lives of Abraham Lincoln, Robert E. Lee, and George Meade, culminating in their confrontation at the Battle of Gettysburg. While many listeners might be well acquainted with Lincoln and Lee, there is plenty of new detail about each. Meade is less well known and comes to life in this audiobook. Narrator Vas Eli does a solid job. He carries the... Read More

In 1943 a select group from the upper echelons of German society gathered at a tea party. They hated what Germany had become under Hitler, and they resolved to stop him. Author and narrator Jonathan Freedland engages listeners in this little-known story of Nazi resistance. His narration is both articulate and steady. His voice drives the narrative with energy, infusing... Read More

Easterly's examination of the history, economics, and ethics of colonialism and the often demeaning "development" of the Third World is delivered by Fred Sanders. Generally, he narrates at a good pace with clarity, textual understanding, and an amiable manner. His slightly hoarse timbre is agreeable enough, but there's a certain woodenness to his diction, partly due to... Read More