First Freedom
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Narrated by:
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Danny Campbell
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By:
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David Harsanyi
About this listen
From “one of America’s smartest political writers” (Glenn Beck) comes a fascinating and accessible history of the United States’ unique and enduring relationship with guns, for fans of Chris Kyle’s American Gun.
For America, the gun is a story of innovation, power, violence, character, and freedom.
From the founding of the nation to the pioneering of the West, from the freeing of the slaves to the urbanization of the 20th century, our country has had a complex and lasting relationship with firearms. Now, in First Freedom, nationally syndicated columnist and veteran writer David Harsanyi explores the ways in which firearms have helped preserve our religious, economic, and cultural institutions for more than two centuries. From Samuel Colt’s early entrepreneurism to the successful firearms technology that helped make the US a superpower, the gun is inextricably tied to our exceptional rise.
In the vein of popular histories like Salt and Seabiscuit, Harsanyi takes you on a captivating and thrilling ride of Second Amendment history that demonstrates why guns are not only an integral part of America’s past, but also an essential part of its future.
©2018 David Harsanyi (P)2018 Simon & SchusterListeners also enjoyed...
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-
-
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George Washington insisted that his portrait be painted with one. Daniel Boone created a legend with one. Abraham Lincoln shot them on the White House lawn. And Teddy Roosevelt had his specially customized. Now, in this first-of-its-kind audiobook, historian Alexander Rose delivers a colorful, engrossing biography of an American icon: the rifle.
-
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- Narrated by: Lee Goettl
- Length: 10 hrs and 14 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Love them or hate them, guns are woven deeply into the American soul. Names like Colt, Smith & Wesson, Winchester, and Remington are legendary. Yet few people are aware of the roles these men played at a crucial time in United States history, from westward expansion in the 1840s, through the Civil War, and into the dawn of the Gilded Age. Through personal drive and fueled by bloodshed, they helped propel the young country into the forefront of the world's industrial powers. Their creations helped save a nation divided, while planting seeds that would divide the country again later.
-
-
Condescending and Biased at best
- By Harry W King III on 01-24-24
-
The Gun
- By: C. J. Chivers
- Narrated by: Michael Prichard
- Length: 18 hrs and 50 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
It is the world's most widely recognized weapon, the most profuse tool for killing ever made. More than fifty national armies carry the automatic Kalashnikov, as do an array of police, intelligence, and security agencies all over the world. In this tour de force, prizewinning New York Times reporter C. J. Chivers traces the invention of the assault rifle.
-
-
A compelling book about much more than guns!
- By Edward on 10-26-10
By: C. J. Chivers
-
American Gun
- A History of the U.S. in Ten Firearms
- By: Chris Kyle, William Doyle
- Narrated by: John Pruden
- Length: 6 hrs and 56 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
At the time of his tragic death in February 2013, former Navy SEAL Chris Kyle, the most accomplished sniper in U.S. military history, was finishing a remarkable book that retold American history through the lens of a hand-selected list of firearms. Kyle masterfully argues that guns have played a fascinating, indispensable, and often under-appreciated role in our national story. He carefully chose ten guns to help tell his story, ranging from the American long rifle to the modern M-16, and uses these guns as a platform for exploring American history.
-
-
An Important Look at US History
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By: Chris Kyle, and others
-
The Guns of John Moses Browning
- The Remarkable Story of the Inventor Whose Firearms Changed the World
- By: Nathan Gorenstein
- Narrated by: Michael David Axtell
- Length: 9 hrs and 23 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Few people are aware that John Moses Browning - a tall, humble, cerebral man born in 1855 and raised as a Mormon in the American West - was the mind behind many of the world-changing firearms that dominated more than a century of conflict. He invented the design used in virtually all modern pistols, created the most popular hunting rifles and shotguns, and conceived the machine guns that proved decisive not just in World Wars I and II but nearly every major military action since. Yet few in America knew his name until he was into his 60s.
-
-
Fascinating Story
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-
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The history of the American gun is intricately entwined with the history of America itself, and the potential future developments in gun technology could change the world. However, the radical anti-gun lobby stands between innovation and the American people. Bestselling author Frank Miniter describes amazing breakthroughs waiting to happen in gun technology - and how gun grabbers threaten to stop progress in its tracks.
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Story
Loaded: A Disarming History of the Second Amendment is a deeply researched - and deeply disturbing - history of guns and gun laws in the United States, from the original colonization of the country to the present. As historian and educator Dunbar-Ortiz explains, in order to understand the current obstacles to gun control, we must understand the history of US guns, from their role in the "settling of America" and the early formation of the new nation, and continuing up to the present.
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Don't bother
- By John Cashman on 12-26-18
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Glock
- The Rise of America's Gun
- By: Paul M. Barrett
- Narrated by: Kiff VandenHeuvel
- Length: 8 hrs and 9 mins
- Unabridged
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Today the Glock pistol has been embraced by two-thirds of all U.S. police departments, glamorized in countless Hollywood movies, and featured as a ubiquitous presence on prime-time TV. It has been rhapsodized by hip-hop artists, and coveted by cops and crooks alike. Created in 1982 by Gaston Glock, an obscure Austrian curtain-rod manufacturer, and swiftly adopted by the Austrian army, the Glock pistol, with its lightweight plastic frame and large-capacity spring-action magazine, arrived in America at a fortuitous time.
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Interesting story. Could have done w/o anti gun rhetoric
- By jcgeesling on 02-24-19
By: Paul M. Barrett
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How to Hide an Empire
- A History of the Greater United States
- By: Daniel Immerwahr
- Narrated by: Luis Moreno
- Length: 17 hrs and 25 mins
- Unabridged
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We are familiar with maps that outline all 50 states. And we are also familiar with the idea that the United States is an "empire", exercising power around the world. But what about the actual territories - the islands, atolls, and archipelagos - this country has governed and inhabited? In How to Hide an Empire, author Daniel Immerwahr tells the fascinating story of the United States outside the United States. In crackling, fast-paced prose, he reveals forgotten episodes that cast American history in a new light.
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How to beat a straw man to death
- By Susan on 01-25-20
By: Daniel Immerwahr
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Bushwhackers
- Guerrilla Warfare, Manhood, and the Household in Civil War Missouri
- By: Joseph M. Beilein Jr.
- Narrated by: Clyde Walker
- Length: 8 hrs and 35 mins
- Unabridged
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Bushwhackers adds to the growing body of literature that examines the various irregular conflicts that took place during the American Civil War. Author Joseph M. Beilein Jr. looks at the ways in which several different bands of guerrillas across Missouri conducted their war in concert with their house- holds and their female kin who provided logistical support in many forms.
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Not very good.
- By Lulu on 05-23-17
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After the Civil War
- The Heroes, Villains, Soldiers, and Civilians Who Changed America
- By: James Robertson
- Narrated by: Barry Press
- Length: 11 hrs and 7 mins
- Unabridged
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Returning to the turbulent days of a nation divided, best-selling author and acclaimed historian James Robertson explores 70 fascinating figures who shaped America during Reconstruction and beyond. Relentless politicians, intrepid fighters, cunning innovators - the times called for bold moves, and this resilient generation would not disappoint.
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Just a southern lost cause book
- By Russell Hansen on 03-24-21
By: James Robertson
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Lone Star
- A History of Texas and the Texans
- By: T. R. Fehrenbach
- Narrated by: John McLain
- Length: 39 hrs and 17 mins
- Unabridged
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Here is a must-listen history of the Lone Star State, together with an insider's look at the people, politics, and events that have shaped Texas from the beginning right up to our days. Never before has the story been told with more vitality and immediacy. Fehrenbach re-creates the Texas saga from prehistory to the Spanish and French invasions to the heyday of the cotton and cattle empires. He dramatically describes the emergence of Texas as a republic, the vote for secession before the Civil War, and the state's readmission to the Union after the War.
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Top -10
- By JNW on 03-29-18
By: T. R. Fehrenbach
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The 21st-Century Sniper
- A Complete Practical Guide
- By: Brandon Webb, Glen Doherty
- Narrated by: Allen O'Reilly
- Length: 4 hrs and 12 mins
- Unabridged
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The 21st century sniper is a mature, intelligent shooter who leverages technology to his deadly advantage. He has spent thousands of hours honing his skills. He is a master of concealment in all environments, from the mountains of Afghanistan to the crowded streets of Iraq. He is trained in science and left alone to create the unique art of the kill. To the sniper, the battlefield is like a painter’s blank canvas. It is his job to simultaneously utilize tools, training, and creativity to deliver devastating psychological impact upon the battlefield. And it is he alone who is left with the intimacy of the kill.
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READ it, Don't Listen
- By Nathan on 02-28-13
By: Brandon Webb, and others
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Bill O'Reilly's Legends and Lies: The Patriots
- By: Bill O'Reilly, David Fisher
- Narrated by: Holter Graham, Bill O'Reilly
- Length: 9 hrs and 51 mins
- Unabridged
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The must-have companion to Bill O'Reilly's historical docudrama Legends and Lies: The Patriots, an exciting and eye-opening look at the Revolutionary War through the lives of its leaders. The American Revolution was neither inevitable nor a unanimous cause. It pitted neighbors against each other as loyalists and colonial rebels faced off for their lives and futures. These were the times that tried men's souls: No one was on stable ground, and few could be trusted.
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Couldn't stop listening!
- By Erin on 08-05-16
By: Bill O'Reilly, and others
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The Harlem Hellfighters
- When Pride Met Courage
- By: Walter Dean Myers, Bill Miles
- Narrated by: Corey Allen
- Length: 2 hrs and 35 mins
- Unabridged
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New York Times best-selling author Walter Dean Myers and renowned filmmaker Bill Miles deftly tell the true story of the unsung American heroes of the 369th Infantry Regiment of World War I in The Harlem Hellfighters: When Pride Met Courage. At a time of widespread bigotry and racism, the African American soldiers of the 369th Infantry Regiment put their lives on the line in the name of democracy.
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Great Accessible History
- By Christopher on 02-21-21
By: Walter Dean Myers, and others
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The Moro War
- How America Battled a Muslim Insurgency in the Philippine Jungle, 1902-1913
- By: James R. Arnold
- Narrated by: Mark Ashby
- Length: 9 hrs and 56 mins
- Unabridged
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As the global war on terror enters its second decade, the United States military is engaged with militant Islamic insurgents on multiple fronts. But the post-9/11 war against terrorists is not the first time the United States has battled such ferocious foes. The forgotten Moro War, lasting from 1902 to 1913 in the islands of the southern Philippines, was the first confrontation between American soldiers and their allies and a determined Muslim insurgency.
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a little dry but good info
- By Paraglox on 03-05-15
By: James R. Arnold
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The American Civil War: History in an Hour
- By: Kat Smutz
- Narrated by: Jonathan Keeble
- Length: 1 hr and 21 mins
- Unabridged
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History for busy people. The American Civil War was fought between the Confederates and the Union from 1861 to 1865. This is a concise history of this tumultuous period.The American Civil War started when eleven southern ‘slave’ states declared their independence from the United States of America. Abraham Lincoln’s Republican government were strongly against slavery and fought to abolish it and keep the country united.
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Left slant.
- By Hamish Barrett on 09-09-18
By: Kat Smutz
What listeners say about First Freedom
Average customer ratingsReviews - Please select the tabs below to change the source of reviews.
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- Nathan
- 01-22-19
A Must-Read/Must-Listen
This book makes for a wonderful crash course in American history, the Second Amendment, what the Right to Bear Arms has meant for American citizens, and how our culture has understood (and misunderstood) that Right. The overviews of the lives of people like Sam Colt, Annie Oakley, John Moses Browning, Maxim, Garand, Ruger, and Stoner provide a fascinating insight into the nature of American capitalism, liberty, the Frontier Spirit of Rugged Individualism, and how guns and gun ownership shaped the nation.
The chapter dealing with the Heller and McDonald rulings is especially good, showing how our legal understanding of one of our most important rights got grounded on solid footing once again, starting with the Late Great Justice Scalia's analysis.
I'm actually surprised the author didn't dive into events like the Battle of Athens, Tennessee. The "Battle" happened when a group of World War II veterans returned home to their town in 1946 and took up arms to overthrow a corrupt local government which had been rigging elections. (If you have a moment, Google it! It's one of many true stories of the Second Amendment in action.)
In a time and place when there is so much disinformation and nastiness in our debate about guns, gun culture, and the meaning of the Second Amendment, a book like this is a welcome dose of intelligent and insightful commentary.
The choice of narrator could have been better, however. I don't think Danny Campbell's reading was godawful, but it sounded rather hoarse and under-powered, and there were moments when he sounded like he was coming down with bronchitis. Most of the time, my attention was held just by the fascinating subject matter, but a few times the raspy narration was just distracting.
All the same, I definitely recommend this book. If you're even the least bit curious about guns, the Second Amendment, and some American history you never learned in high school, check this one out!
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- Amazon Customer
- 07-17-23
History of Firearms Innovations
This book is touted as having content that supports the second amendment, and there is some of that. However it is more a book of firearms history.
One area I find useful: it touches on the innovations of John Browning. Includes the Browning Automatic Rifle (the BAR), which allowed soldiers to carry an automatic while moving forward ("walking fire").
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- Robert
- 03-07-19
A wonderful history
Well done and not only informative but also entertaining. If you are interested in small arms this book has it all.
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- Devlin the Dog
- 10-09-18
Must read!
Every gun owner, lawyer, even anti 2nd Amendment person should read this. It so concisely lays out our right to bear arms for the one’s defense. It chews up all the anti 2A arguments with logic and legal scripture.
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- Peter G Brown
- 11-05-18
Readers Voice
Great book but I found the reader’s voice off- putting. He Sounded hoarse and rough.
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- Eli goodman
- 05-20-19
worth the read
the history of guns though time and mostly America. Very good read. Check it out.
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- rwasham
- 02-13-23
Excellent and Informative
Excellent and Informative. This book provides a well rounded overview of the history of the gun in America.
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- Greg
- 11-06-18
Great history of firearms in America
This book really gave a great history of firearms from early match lock up to modern firearms. I will be re-listening to this book again.
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- Daniel Shedd
- 11-24-18
fascinating
this is a great history of the gun and how it has shaped american attitudes and built the country into what it is today.
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- rcmedic
- 06-27-19
Great book
A wealth of information about guns throughout history to the current day which includes the the science, politics and human perspective. A great read.
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