socalconsumer

Well done & humanely written

Reviewed: 05-08-25

My first exposure to Lafayette was from buying clothes from Lafayette 148 so took on this biography not knowing much about the man or why so many places in the USA are named after him.

I was surprised at how much affection for our hero I came away with. The history of this man is remarkable. Duncan writes well and narrates almost as well. I learned a lot about the people involved & sequence of events in both revolutions. I also appreciated Duncan’s and Lafayette’s considerations of slavery.

I look forward to reading & listening to more work by Mike Duncan. If you’ve listened to his Revolutions podcast (I bypassed American & French revolutions in favour of the ~150-episode Russian) you’ll know you’re up for an entertaining and well researched book.

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I want to live in the North Woods

Reviewed: 09-29-24

What a terrific saga. I just finished it and am in a daze. The narration was wonderful, as if the narrator had written the book.
As an example, the early chapter introducing the Osgoode Wonder has to be the absolute best chapter I have come across in a book of fiction.

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Engaging, informative from start to fnish

Reviewed: 05-09-24

What an epic! I was a committed listener throughout. I am impressed by the breadth of the coverage. I can’t imagine the stamina it took to write and to narrate (the narration was superb!) Yes, there were areas of simplification and also moments of exaggeration but they were fleeting. This book is very worth the listen.

One of my favorite things to pay attention to with history books is the balance between the necessary political, military, and geographical history versus the people’s history; what was it like to live in that time and place. This book included a decent coverage of the arts, religion, women’s positions and even some sports/athletics.

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An informative and thoughtful history

Reviewed: 03-26-24

The breadth of this history filled in so many gaps in my understanding of Germany— from its disparate parts at the start of the 16th century through to the 2000s. I appreciated the numerous examples used to illustrate many complex concepts & events. The narrative flowed nicely across 5 centuries, and did do smoothly and clearly.

I enjoyed the narration and was able to listen for hours at a time.

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Superb narration & great coverage of a significant period of world history

Reviewed: 03-24-24

I love a history such as this that gives significant coverage to elements beyond military and political ones. As the author says in his introduction, he cannot give full coverage to all events, influences, geographies or time frames, despite the book being almost 1000 pages. But what a great springboard for digging deeper.

I didn’t initially realize that the author is reading his own book, but i’m glad he did. He did a superb job. I will eagerly read and/or listen to other works of his.

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History of Tudor era people

Reviewed: 02-09-24

So wonderful to find a history that is not focused on military or heavy on politics. I learned so much, on many levels. Written and narrated beautifully.

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Enjoyed it much more than i had expected

Reviewed: 11-03-23

It took a bit of patience & persistence to get past Mitchell’s schtick at the start (i thought it corny), partly because I didn’t realize who he was until i looked him up, and partly because it was distracting. But before i knew it i was snickering at his cleverness and was deeply immersed.

His view of history is refreshing. He does a terrific job positioning, telling, and summarizing the stories (his last chapter could be used as a teaching tool in how to write a wrap-up).

I hope he has a sequel because i really want to hear his take on the 18th-20th century monarchs, and maybe even the interregnum.

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1 person found this helpful

Great story & narration; i wish it were longer (sad face emoji)

Reviewed: 08-12-23

I was surprised that i would be so engaged in the audio book. I was sewing myself a blouse and kept having to stop to listen. I loved all the characters — they were forthright, sometimes charming, sometimes maddening, a little sad yet hopeful, and so resilient. In case you think this is young(er) woman’s book, think again. I am in my 60s and loved it.

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5 people found this helpful

Political & military history , NOT a people’s history

Reviewed: 07-13-23

Start of the book could gave benefited from context of what was going on in the world and North America.
Attention given to events, etc., across the timeline is very uneven and doesn’t relate to the relevance of the history and current situation of Quebec.
Narration was very strange. At times i wondered whether it was an automated reading of the text. E.g., little to no pausing between sentences or paragraphs

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Encouraged me to learn more

Reviewed: 04-03-23

I thoroughly enjoyed this course and learned a lot. I value the professor’s perspective and his references to other scholars. His enthusiasm and personality came through really well, which encouraged me to keep listening and learning.

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