Terrible Swift Sword
The Centennial History of the Civil War, Vol. 2
Failed to add items
Add to Cart failed.
Add to Wish List failed.
Remove from wishlist failed.
Adding to library failed
Follow podcast failed
Unfollow podcast failed
Buy for $25.79
No default payment method selected.
We are sorry. We are not allowed to sell this product with the selected payment method
-
Narrated by:
-
Nelson Runger
-
By:
-
Bruce Catton
About this listen
Terrible Swift Sword (Vol. 2): The dismissal of George McClellan and the rise of Ulysses S. Grant.
©1963 Bruce Catton (P)1989 Recorded Books, LLCListeners also enjoyed...
-
The Coming Fury
- The Centennial History of the Civil War, Volume 1
- By: Bruce Catton
- Narrated by: Nelson Runger
- Length: 20 hrs and 14 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
> The New York Times hailed this trilogy as “one of the greatest historical accomplishments of our time”. With stunning detail and insights, America’s foremost Civil War historian recreates the war from its opening months to its final, bloody end. Each volume delivers a complete listening experience. The Coming Fury (Volume 1) covers the split Democratic Convention in the spring of 1860 to the first battle of Bull Run.
-
-
History As It Should Be
- By Bryan on 07-19-11
By: Bruce Catton
-
The Myth of the Lost Cause
- Why the South Fought the Civil War and Why the North Won
- By: Edward H. Bonekemper III
- Narrated by: C.J. McAllister
- Length: 9 hrs and 3 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
The former Confederate states have continually mythologized the South's defeat to the North, depicting the Civil War as unnecessary, or as a fight over states' Constitutional rights, or as a David v. Goliath struggle in which the North waged "total war" over an underdog South. In The Myth of the Lost Cause, historian Edward Bonekemper deconstructs this multi-faceted myth, revealing the truth about the war that nearly tore the nation apart 150 years ago.
-
-
The Civil War was about Slavery. Period.
- By Reg on 02-07-17
-
Grant Moves South
- By: Bruce Catton
- Narrated by: Bronson Pinchot
- Length: 17 hrs and 58 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
A Pulitzer Prize-winning historian's acclaimed Civil War history of the complex man and controversial Union commander whose battlefield brilliance ensured the downfall of the Confederacy. Preeminent Civil War historian Bruce Catton narrows his focus on commander Ulysses S. Grant, whose bold tactics and relentless dedication to the Union ultimately ensured a Northern victory in the nation's bloodiest conflict.
-
-
Riveting history with a great narration
- By Roberta Rothwell on 01-11-18
By: Bruce Catton
-
Mr. Lincoln's Army
- By: Bruce Catton
- Narrated by: Kevin T. Collins
- Length: 17 hrs and 20 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
A magnificent history of the opening years of the Civil War by Pulitzer Prize-winning author Bruce Catton. The first book in Bruce Catton's Pulitzer Prize-winning Army of the Potomac Trilogy, Mr. Lincoln's Army is a riveting history of the early years of the Civil War, when a fledgling Union Army took its stumbling first steps under the command of the controversial general George McClellan.
-
-
Very poor reader with great material
- By L Day on 07-28-16
By: Bruce Catton
-
The Collapse of the Third Republic
- An Inquiry into the Fall of France in 1940
- By: William L. Shirer
- Narrated by: Grover Gardner
- Length: 48 hrs and 10 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
As an international war correspondent and radio commentator, William L. Shirer didn't just research the fall of France. He was there. In just six weeks, he watched the Third Reich topple one of the world's oldest military powers - and institute a rule of terror and paranoia. Based on in-person conversation with the leaders, diplomats, generals, and ordinary citizens who both shaped the events of this time and lived through them on a daily basis, Shirer shapes a compelling account of historical events - without losing sight of the personal experience.
-
-
So much information
- By Daniel L Carmony on 05-14-19
-
This Hallowed Ground
- A History of the Civil War
- By: Bruce Catton
- Narrated by: David Drummond
- Length: 18 hrs and 55 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
This audiobook is the classic one-volume history of the American Civil War by Pulitzer Prize winner Bruce Catton. Covering events from the prelude of the conflict to the death of Lincoln, Catton blends a gripping narrative with deep, yet unassuming, scholarship to bring the war alive in an almost novelistic way. It is this gift for narrative that led contemporary critics to compare this book to War and Peace, and call it a "modern Iliad." Now over 50 years old, This Hallowed Ground remains one of the best-loved and admired general Civil War books.
-
-
Still one of the best!
- By Homer on 04-21-19
By: Bruce Catton
-
The Coming Fury
- The Centennial History of the Civil War, Volume 1
- By: Bruce Catton
- Narrated by: Nelson Runger
- Length: 20 hrs and 14 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
> The New York Times hailed this trilogy as “one of the greatest historical accomplishments of our time”. With stunning detail and insights, America’s foremost Civil War historian recreates the war from its opening months to its final, bloody end. Each volume delivers a complete listening experience. The Coming Fury (Volume 1) covers the split Democratic Convention in the spring of 1860 to the first battle of Bull Run.
-
-
History As It Should Be
- By Bryan on 07-19-11
By: Bruce Catton
-
The Myth of the Lost Cause
- Why the South Fought the Civil War and Why the North Won
- By: Edward H. Bonekemper III
- Narrated by: C.J. McAllister
- Length: 9 hrs and 3 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
The former Confederate states have continually mythologized the South's defeat to the North, depicting the Civil War as unnecessary, or as a fight over states' Constitutional rights, or as a David v. Goliath struggle in which the North waged "total war" over an underdog South. In The Myth of the Lost Cause, historian Edward Bonekemper deconstructs this multi-faceted myth, revealing the truth about the war that nearly tore the nation apart 150 years ago.
-
-
The Civil War was about Slavery. Period.
- By Reg on 02-07-17
-
Grant Moves South
- By: Bruce Catton
- Narrated by: Bronson Pinchot
- Length: 17 hrs and 58 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
A Pulitzer Prize-winning historian's acclaimed Civil War history of the complex man and controversial Union commander whose battlefield brilliance ensured the downfall of the Confederacy. Preeminent Civil War historian Bruce Catton narrows his focus on commander Ulysses S. Grant, whose bold tactics and relentless dedication to the Union ultimately ensured a Northern victory in the nation's bloodiest conflict.
-
-
Riveting history with a great narration
- By Roberta Rothwell on 01-11-18
By: Bruce Catton
-
Mr. Lincoln's Army
- By: Bruce Catton
- Narrated by: Kevin T. Collins
- Length: 17 hrs and 20 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
A magnificent history of the opening years of the Civil War by Pulitzer Prize-winning author Bruce Catton. The first book in Bruce Catton's Pulitzer Prize-winning Army of the Potomac Trilogy, Mr. Lincoln's Army is a riveting history of the early years of the Civil War, when a fledgling Union Army took its stumbling first steps under the command of the controversial general George McClellan.
-
-
Very poor reader with great material
- By L Day on 07-28-16
By: Bruce Catton
-
The Collapse of the Third Republic
- An Inquiry into the Fall of France in 1940
- By: William L. Shirer
- Narrated by: Grover Gardner
- Length: 48 hrs and 10 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
As an international war correspondent and radio commentator, William L. Shirer didn't just research the fall of France. He was there. In just six weeks, he watched the Third Reich topple one of the world's oldest military powers - and institute a rule of terror and paranoia. Based on in-person conversation with the leaders, diplomats, generals, and ordinary citizens who both shaped the events of this time and lived through them on a daily basis, Shirer shapes a compelling account of historical events - without losing sight of the personal experience.
-
-
So much information
- By Daniel L Carmony on 05-14-19
-
This Hallowed Ground
- A History of the Civil War
- By: Bruce Catton
- Narrated by: David Drummond
- Length: 18 hrs and 55 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
This audiobook is the classic one-volume history of the American Civil War by Pulitzer Prize winner Bruce Catton. Covering events from the prelude of the conflict to the death of Lincoln, Catton blends a gripping narrative with deep, yet unassuming, scholarship to bring the war alive in an almost novelistic way. It is this gift for narrative that led contemporary critics to compare this book to War and Peace, and call it a "modern Iliad." Now over 50 years old, This Hallowed Ground remains one of the best-loved and admired general Civil War books.
-
-
Still one of the best!
- By Homer on 04-21-19
By: Bruce Catton
-
Combat: The Civil War
- By: Don Congdon, Bruce Catton
- Narrated by: Joe Barrett
- Length: 29 hrs and 50 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
There are many, many studies of the Civil War. Books have been written on its economic effects, its political causes, its relationship to western expansion. But the real fascination of the war is the story of combat, men in battle. Combat: The Civil War tells this story in the words of men who actually marched into battle. We share their experiences, their fears, and their moments of bravery at Vicksburg, on board the Monitor, at Gettysburg, and at the bloody battle of Antietam. These eyewitness accounts are interspersed with brief commentaries by some of our most respected historians....
-
-
Could Have Been Better
- By Amazon Customer on 07-06-13
By: Don Congdon, and others
-
Battle Cry of Freedom
- The Civil War Era
- By: James M. McPherson
- Narrated by: Jonathan Davis
- Length: 39 hrs and 40 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Battle Cry of Freedom vividly traces how a new nation was forged when a war both sides were sure would amount to little dragged for four years and cost more American lives than all other wars combined. Narrator Jonathan Davis powerful reading brings to life the many voices of the Civil War.
-
-
Excellent Book
- By J. Weston on 12-11-20
-
The Civil War: A Narrative, Volume I, Fort Sumter to Perryville
- By: Shelby Foote
- Narrated by: Grover Gardner
- Length: 42 hrs and 58 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
The Civil War: A Narrative, Volume 1 begins one of the most remarkable works of history ever fashioned. All the great battles are here, of course, from Bull Run through Shiloh, the Seven Days Battles, and Antietam, but so are the smaller ones: Ball's Bluff, Fort Donelson, Pea Ridge, Island Ten, New Orleans, and Monitor versus Merrimac.
-
-
OUTSTANDING! I'M PROUD TO BE A BLACK AMERICAN!!
- By The Louligan on 08-22-13
By: Shelby Foote
-
U. S. Grant and the American Military Tradition
- By: Bruce Catton
- Narrated by: Robert Fass
- Length: 5 hrs and 36 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
A fascinating and insightful examination of the life and times of the victorious Civil War general who became a controversial American president. In U. S. Grant and the American Military Tradition, Pulitzer Prize-winning historian Bruce Catton explores the life and legacy of one of the nation's greatest and most misunderstood heroes before, during, and after the terrible War Between the States that violently split the country in two.
-
-
Very Biased and distorted view of Reconstruction
- By Karl CPTX on 12-01-17
By: Bruce Catton
-
Rebel Yell
- The Violence, Passion, and Redemption of Stonewall Jackson
- By: S. C. Gwynne
- Narrated by: Cotter Smith
- Length: 24 hrs and 58 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
General Stonewall Jackson was like no one anyone had ever seen. In April of 1862 he was merely another Confederate general with only a single battle credential in an army fighting in what seemed to be a losing cause. By middle June he had engineered perhaps the greatest military campaign in American history and was one of the most famous men in the Western World. He had given the Confederate cause what it had recently lacked: hope.
-
-
Candidate for "My Daguerreotype Boyfriend"
- By Dorothy on 01-10-15
By: S. C. Gwynne
-
Gettysburg: The Last Invasion
- By: Allen C. Guelzo
- Narrated by: Robertson Dean
- Length: 22 hrs and 33 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
From the acclaimed Civil War historian, a brilliant new history–the most intimate and richly readable account we have had–of the climactic three-day battle of Gettysburg (July 1–3, 1863), which draws the reader into the heat, smoke, and grime of Gettysburg alongside the ordinary soldier, and depicts the combination of personalities and circumstances that produced the greatest battle of the Civil War, and one of the greatest in human history.
-
-
A Fresh Look at a Famous Battle
- By W. F. Rucker on 07-03-13
By: Allen C. Guelzo
-
Landscape Turned Red
- The Battle of Antietam
- By: Stephen W. Sears
- Narrated by: Barrett Whitener
- Length: 14 hrs and 31 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
The Civil War battle waged on September 17, 1862, at Antietam Creek, Maryland, was one of the bloodiest in the nation's history: On this single day, the battle claimed nearly 23,000 casualties. In Landscape Turned Red, the renowned historian Stephen Sears draws on a remarkable cache of diaries, dispatches, and letters to recreate the vivid drama of Antietam as experienced not only by its leaders but also by its soldiers, both Union and Confederate.
-
-
Excellent Book
- By David on 08-16-06
By: Stephen W. Sears
-
Personal Memoirs of Ulysses S. Grant
- By: Ulysses S. Grant
- Narrated by: Robin Field
- Length: 29 hrs and 34 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Among the autobiographies of great military figures, Ulysses S. Grant’s is certainly one of the finest, and it is arguably the most notable literary achievement of any American president: a lucid, compelling, and brutally honest chronicle of triumph and failure. From his frontier boyhood, to his heroics in battle, to the grinding poverty from which the Civil War ironically rescued him, these memoirs are a mesmerizing, deeply moving account of a brilliant man told with great courage.
-
-
Surprisingly funny and very informative.
- By Trent on 08-20-12
By: Ulysses S. Grant
-
The Impending Crisis
- America Before the Civil War: 1848-1861
- By: David M. Potter, Don E. Fehrenbacher
- Narrated by: Eric Martin
- Length: 22 hrs and 41 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
David M. Potter's Pulitzer Prize-winning The Impending Crisis is the definitive history of antebellum America. Potter's sweeping epic masterfully charts the chaotic forces that climaxed with the outbreak of the Civil War: westward expansion, the divisive issue of slavery, the Dred Scott decision, John Brown's uprising, the ascension of Abraham Lincoln, and the drama of Southern secession.
-
-
A Slog for Sure
- By Brux on 04-13-17
By: David M. Potter, and others
-
The American Civil War
- A Military History
- By: John Keegan
- Narrated by: Robin Sachs
- Length: 16 hrs and 32 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
For the past half century, John Keegan, the greatest military historian of our time, has been returning to the scenes of America’s most bloody and wrenching war to ponder its lingering conundrums: the continuation of fighting for four years between such vastly mismatched sides; the dogged persistence of ill-trained, ill-equipped, and often malnourished combatants; the effective absence of decisive battles among some two to three hundred known to us by name.
-
-
A Novel Approach (As Opposed to Novelistic)
- By margot on 11-18-12
By: John Keegan
-
Meade at Gettysburg
- A Study in Command
- By: Kent Masterson Brown
- Narrated by: Shawn Compton
- Length: 14 hrs and 14 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Although he took command of the Army of the Potomac only three days before the first shots were fired at Gettysburg, Union general George G. Meade guided his forces to victory in the Civil War's most pivotal battle. Commentators often dismiss Meade when discussing the great leaders of the Civil War. But in this long-anticipated book, Kent Masterson Brown draws on an expansive archive to reappraise Meade's leadership during the Battle of Gettysburg.
-
-
Fantastic Book
- By Taylor Boulet on 04-14-22
-
Hymns of the Republic
- The Story of the Final Year of the American Civil War
- By: S. C. Gwynne
- Narrated by: Robert Petkoff
- Length: 14 hrs and 29 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
The fourth and final year of the Civil War offers one of that era’s most compelling narratives, defining the nation and one of history’s great turning points. Now, S.C. Gwynne’s Hymns of the Republic addresses the time Ulysses S. Grant arrives to take command of all Union armies in March 1864 to the surrender of Robert E. Lee at Appomattox a year later. He breathes new life into the epic battle between Lee and Grant; the advent of 180,000 black soldiers in the Union army; Sherman’s March to the Sea; the rise of Clara Barton; and much more.
-
-
Questionable
- By Stafford Lewis on 05-16-20
By: S. C. Gwynne
Related to this topic
-
The Coming Fury
- The Centennial History of the Civil War, Volume 1
- By: Bruce Catton
- Narrated by: Nelson Runger
- Length: 20 hrs and 14 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
> The New York Times hailed this trilogy as “one of the greatest historical accomplishments of our time”. With stunning detail and insights, America’s foremost Civil War historian recreates the war from its opening months to its final, bloody end. Each volume delivers a complete listening experience. The Coming Fury (Volume 1) covers the split Democratic Convention in the spring of 1860 to the first battle of Bull Run.
-
-
History As It Should Be
- By Bryan on 07-19-11
By: Bruce Catton
-
Grant
- By: Jean Edward Smith
- Narrated by: Keith Sellon-Wright
- Length: 29 hrs and 7 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
In this comprehensive biography, Jean Edward Smith reconciles conflicting assessments of Grant's life, arguing that Grant is greatly underrated as a president. Following the turmoil of Andrew Johnson's administration, Grant guided the nation through the post-Civil War era, overseeing Reconstruction of the South and enforcing the freedoms of new African-American citizens. His presidential accomplishments were as considerable as his military victories, for the same strength of character that made him successful on the battlefield also characterized his years in the White House.
-
-
Splendid Biography Inspires New Respect for Grant
- By John David on 10-07-19
-
Hymns of the Republic
- The Story of the Final Year of the American Civil War
- By: S. C. Gwynne
- Narrated by: Robert Petkoff
- Length: 14 hrs and 29 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
The fourth and final year of the Civil War offers one of that era’s most compelling narratives, defining the nation and one of history’s great turning points. Now, S.C. Gwynne’s Hymns of the Republic addresses the time Ulysses S. Grant arrives to take command of all Union armies in March 1864 to the surrender of Robert E. Lee at Appomattox a year later. He breathes new life into the epic battle between Lee and Grant; the advent of 180,000 black soldiers in the Union army; Sherman’s March to the Sea; the rise of Clara Barton; and much more.
-
-
Questionable
- By Stafford Lewis on 05-16-20
By: S. C. Gwynne
-
Winning Independence
- The Decisive Years of the Revolutionary War, 1778-1781
- By: John Ferling
- Narrated by: Rhett Samuel Price
- Length: 24 hrs and 48 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
It was 1778, and the recent American victory at Saratoga had netted the US a powerful ally in France. Many, including General George Washington, presumed France’s entrance into the war meant independence was just around the corner. Meanwhile, having lost an entire army at Saratoga, Great Britain pivoted to a 'southern strategy'. The army would henceforth seek to regain its southern colonies, Virginia, North Carolina, South Carolina and Georgia, a highly profitable segment of its prewar American empire.
-
-
Superb
- By Aldy on 06-10-21
By: John Ferling
-
This Hallowed Ground
- A History of the Civil War
- By: Bruce Catton
- Narrated by: David Drummond
- Length: 18 hrs and 55 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
This audiobook is the classic one-volume history of the American Civil War by Pulitzer Prize winner Bruce Catton. Covering events from the prelude of the conflict to the death of Lincoln, Catton blends a gripping narrative with deep, yet unassuming, scholarship to bring the war alive in an almost novelistic way. It is this gift for narrative that led contemporary critics to compare this book to War and Peace, and call it a "modern Iliad." Now over 50 years old, This Hallowed Ground remains one of the best-loved and admired general Civil War books.
-
-
Still one of the best!
- By Homer on 04-21-19
By: Bruce Catton
-
The American Heritage History of World War I
- By: S. L. A. Marshall
- Narrated by: Bernard Mayes
- Length: 19 hrs and 1 min
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Drawing on a lifetime of military experience, Brigadier General S. L. A. Marshall, "one of our most distinguished military writers" ( New York Times), delivers this unflinching history of the war that was supposed to end all wars. From the perspective of more than half a century, Marshall examines the blunders and complacency that turned what everyone thought would be a brief campaign and an easy victory into a relentless four-year slaughter that left 10 million dead and 20 million wounded.
-
-
WW1 from American point of view
- By Jean on 10-19-12
-
The Coming Fury
- The Centennial History of the Civil War, Volume 1
- By: Bruce Catton
- Narrated by: Nelson Runger
- Length: 20 hrs and 14 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
> The New York Times hailed this trilogy as “one of the greatest historical accomplishments of our time”. With stunning detail and insights, America’s foremost Civil War historian recreates the war from its opening months to its final, bloody end. Each volume delivers a complete listening experience. The Coming Fury (Volume 1) covers the split Democratic Convention in the spring of 1860 to the first battle of Bull Run.
-
-
History As It Should Be
- By Bryan on 07-19-11
By: Bruce Catton
-
Grant
- By: Jean Edward Smith
- Narrated by: Keith Sellon-Wright
- Length: 29 hrs and 7 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
In this comprehensive biography, Jean Edward Smith reconciles conflicting assessments of Grant's life, arguing that Grant is greatly underrated as a president. Following the turmoil of Andrew Johnson's administration, Grant guided the nation through the post-Civil War era, overseeing Reconstruction of the South and enforcing the freedoms of new African-American citizens. His presidential accomplishments were as considerable as his military victories, for the same strength of character that made him successful on the battlefield also characterized his years in the White House.
-
-
Splendid Biography Inspires New Respect for Grant
- By John David on 10-07-19
-
Hymns of the Republic
- The Story of the Final Year of the American Civil War
- By: S. C. Gwynne
- Narrated by: Robert Petkoff
- Length: 14 hrs and 29 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
The fourth and final year of the Civil War offers one of that era’s most compelling narratives, defining the nation and one of history’s great turning points. Now, S.C. Gwynne’s Hymns of the Republic addresses the time Ulysses S. Grant arrives to take command of all Union armies in March 1864 to the surrender of Robert E. Lee at Appomattox a year later. He breathes new life into the epic battle between Lee and Grant; the advent of 180,000 black soldiers in the Union army; Sherman’s March to the Sea; the rise of Clara Barton; and much more.
-
-
Questionable
- By Stafford Lewis on 05-16-20
By: S. C. Gwynne
-
Winning Independence
- The Decisive Years of the Revolutionary War, 1778-1781
- By: John Ferling
- Narrated by: Rhett Samuel Price
- Length: 24 hrs and 48 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
It was 1778, and the recent American victory at Saratoga had netted the US a powerful ally in France. Many, including General George Washington, presumed France’s entrance into the war meant independence was just around the corner. Meanwhile, having lost an entire army at Saratoga, Great Britain pivoted to a 'southern strategy'. The army would henceforth seek to regain its southern colonies, Virginia, North Carolina, South Carolina and Georgia, a highly profitable segment of its prewar American empire.
-
-
Superb
- By Aldy on 06-10-21
By: John Ferling
-
This Hallowed Ground
- A History of the Civil War
- By: Bruce Catton
- Narrated by: David Drummond
- Length: 18 hrs and 55 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
This audiobook is the classic one-volume history of the American Civil War by Pulitzer Prize winner Bruce Catton. Covering events from the prelude of the conflict to the death of Lincoln, Catton blends a gripping narrative with deep, yet unassuming, scholarship to bring the war alive in an almost novelistic way. It is this gift for narrative that led contemporary critics to compare this book to War and Peace, and call it a "modern Iliad." Now over 50 years old, This Hallowed Ground remains one of the best-loved and admired general Civil War books.
-
-
Still one of the best!
- By Homer on 04-21-19
By: Bruce Catton
-
The American Heritage History of World War I
- By: S. L. A. Marshall
- Narrated by: Bernard Mayes
- Length: 19 hrs and 1 min
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Drawing on a lifetime of military experience, Brigadier General S. L. A. Marshall, "one of our most distinguished military writers" ( New York Times), delivers this unflinching history of the war that was supposed to end all wars. From the perspective of more than half a century, Marshall examines the blunders and complacency that turned what everyone thought would be a brief campaign and an easy victory into a relentless four-year slaughter that left 10 million dead and 20 million wounded.
-
-
WW1 from American point of view
- By Jean on 10-19-12
-
The Compleat Victory
- Saratoga and the American Revolution
- By: Kevin Weddle
- Narrated by: Paul Heitsch
- Length: 18 hrs and 24 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
In the late summer and fall of 1777, after two years of indecisive fighting on both sides, the outcome of the American War of Independence hung in the balance. Having successfully expelled the Americans from Canada in 1776, the British were determined to end the rebellion the following year and devised what they believed a war-winning strategy, sending General John Burgoyne south to rout the Americans and take Albany.
-
-
Great insight to the tactical and strategic impacts of Saratoga.
- By Ace on 12-07-24
By: Kevin Weddle
-
Vicksburg
- Grant's Campaign That Broke the Confederacy
- By: Donald L. Miller
- Narrated by: Rick Adamson
- Length: 21 hrs and 28 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Vicksburg, Mississippi, was the last stronghold of the Confederacy on the Mississippi River. It prevented the Union from using the river for shipping between the Union-controlled Midwest and New Orleans and the Gulf of Mexico. The Union navy tried to take Vicksburg, which sat on a high bluff overlooking the river, but couldn't do it. It took Grant's army and Admiral David Porter's navy to successfully invade Mississippi and lay siege to Vicksburg, forcing the city to surrender.
-
-
Revisionist & Biased & Redundant
- By DDSC on 05-26-21
By: Donald L. Miller
-
Conquered
- Why the Army of Tennessee Failed
- By: Larry J. Daniel
- Narrated by: Paul Heitsch
- Length: 15 hrs and 48 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Operating in the vast and varied trans-Appalachian west, the Army of Tennessee was crucially important to the military fate of the Confederacy. But under the principal leadership of generals such as Braxton Bragg, Joseph E. Johnston, and John Bell Hood, it won few major battles, and many regard its inability to halt steady Union advances into the Confederate heartland as a matter of failed leadership.
-
-
Alas, alas
- By Charles on 08-07-20
By: Larry J. Daniel
-
Almost a Miracle
- The American Victory in the War of Independence
- By: John Ferling
- Narrated by: David Baker
- Length: 26 hrs and 57 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
In this gripping chronicle of America's struggle for independence, award-winning historian John Ferling transports listeners to the grim realities of that war, capturing an eight-year conflict filled with heroism, suffering, cowardice, betrayal, and fierce dedication. As Ferling demonstrates, it was a war that America came much closer to losing than is now usually remembered. General George Washington put it best when he said that the American victory was "little short of a standing miracle."
-
-
Dramatic Backstory of The War for Independence
- By Amazon Customer on 11-22-15
By: John Ferling
-
The Road to Guilford Courthouse
- The American Revolution in the Carolinas
- By: John Buchanan
- Narrated by: Pete Cross
- Length: 22 hrs and 6 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
This brilliant account of the proud and ferocious American fighters who stood up to the British forces in savage battles highlights just how crucial these individuals were in deciding both the fate of the Carolina colonies and the outcome of the American Civil War.
-
-
Amazing Book
- By Anthony S. on 04-01-21
By: John Buchanan
-
Crossroads of Freedom
- Antietam
- By: James M. McPherson
- Narrated by: Nelson Runger
- Length: 5 hrs and 48 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Through historical newspaper accounts and the personal letters of soldiers, the events leading up to the battle and the battle itself are stunningly recreated. You will enter the mind of Robert E. Lee as he makes the fateful decision to cross the Potomac River and take the offensive. You will feel the frustration of Abraham Lincoln as he struggles to convince George McClellan to fight. And you will stand side-by-side with foot soldiers as the peaceful Maryland countryside explodes.
-
-
Far beyond the scope of the battle
- By A. McDonald on 01-26-04
-
Revolutionary
- George Washington at War
- By: Robert L. O'Connell
- Narrated by: Eric Jason Martin
- Length: 12 hrs and 52 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
From an acclaimed military historian, a bold reappraisal of young George Washington, an ambitious if reckless soldier destined to become the legendary general who took on the British and, through his leadership, defined the American character.
-
-
Interesting
- By Shielding C on 06-25-22
-
Revolution on the Hudson
- New York City and the Hudson River Valley in the American War of Independence
- By: George C. Daughan
- Narrated by: Jonathan Yen
- Length: 13 hrs and 53 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
No part of the country was more contested during the American Revolution than the Hudson River. In 1776 King George III sent the largest amphibious force ever assembled to seize Manhattan and use it as a base from which to push up the Hudson River Valley for a rendezvous at Albany with an impressive army driving down from Canada. George Washington and other patriot leaders shared the king's fixation with the Hudson.
-
-
Tough Criticism But Fair
- By Blue on 03-15-21
-
The American Civil War
- A Military History
- By: John Keegan
- Narrated by: Robin Sachs
- Length: 16 hrs and 32 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
For the past half century, John Keegan, the greatest military historian of our time, has been returning to the scenes of America’s most bloody and wrenching war to ponder its lingering conundrums: the continuation of fighting for four years between such vastly mismatched sides; the dogged persistence of ill-trained, ill-equipped, and often malnourished combatants; the effective absence of decisive battles among some two to three hundred known to us by name.
-
-
A Novel Approach (As Opposed to Novelistic)
- By margot on 11-18-12
By: John Keegan
-
1777
- The Year of the Hangman
- By: John S. Pancake
- Narrated by: Robert Thaler
- Length: 13 hrs and 29 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
A revisionist view of the Revolution's most crucial year...it explodes many of the myths surrounding Burgoyne's Canadian expedition and Howe's Pennsylvania campaign. There is a wealth of fascinating detail in this book, including information on arms and supplies, rations for women camp followers, and even the numbers of carts (30-odd) carrying Burgoyne's luggage.
-
-
Very Good
- By William on 08-22-16
By: John S. Pancake
-
A Savage War
- A Military History of the Civil War
- By: Wayne Wei-siang Hsieh, Williamson Murray
- Narrated by: Mike Chamberlain
- Length: 24 hrs and 1 min
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
The Civil War represented a momentous change in the character of war. It combined the projection of military might across a continent on a scale never before seen with an unprecedented mass mobilization of peoples. Yet despite the revolutionizing aspects of the Civil War, its leaders faced the same uncertainties that have vexed combatants since the days of Thucydides and the Peloponnesian War.
-
-
A Book about Conclusions
- By Terry Masters on 10-18-17
By: Wayne Wei-siang Hsieh, and others
-
Daniel Morgan: A Revolutionary Life
- By: Albert Louis Zambone
- Narrated by: Tom Taverna
- Length: 12 hrs and 11 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
On January 17, 1781, at Cowpens, South Carolina, the notorious British cavalry officer Banastre Tarleton and his legion had been destroyed along with the cream of Lord Cornwallis’s troops. The man who planned and executed this stunning American victory was Daniel Morgan. Once a barely literate backcountry laborer, Morgan now stood at the pinnacle of American martial success. When George Washington called for troops to join him at the siege of Boston in 1775, Morgan organized a select group of riflemen and headed north.
-
-
Good Book
- By Rob K on 04-08-20
People who viewed this also viewed...
-
The Coming Fury
- The Centennial History of the Civil War, Volume 1
- By: Bruce Catton
- Narrated by: Nelson Runger
- Length: 20 hrs and 14 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
> The New York Times hailed this trilogy as “one of the greatest historical accomplishments of our time”. With stunning detail and insights, America’s foremost Civil War historian recreates the war from its opening months to its final, bloody end. Each volume delivers a complete listening experience. The Coming Fury (Volume 1) covers the split Democratic Convention in the spring of 1860 to the first battle of Bull Run.
-
-
History As It Should Be
- By Bryan on 07-19-11
By: Bruce Catton
-
Mr. Lincoln's Army
- By: Bruce Catton
- Narrated by: Kevin T. Collins
- Length: 17 hrs and 20 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
A magnificent history of the opening years of the Civil War by Pulitzer Prize-winning author Bruce Catton. The first book in Bruce Catton's Pulitzer Prize-winning Army of the Potomac Trilogy, Mr. Lincoln's Army is a riveting history of the early years of the Civil War, when a fledgling Union Army took its stumbling first steps under the command of the controversial general George McClellan.
-
-
Very poor reader with great material
- By L Day on 07-28-16
By: Bruce Catton
-
This Hallowed Ground
- A History of the Civil War
- By: Bruce Catton
- Narrated by: David Drummond
- Length: 18 hrs and 55 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
This audiobook is the classic one-volume history of the American Civil War by Pulitzer Prize winner Bruce Catton. Covering events from the prelude of the conflict to the death of Lincoln, Catton blends a gripping narrative with deep, yet unassuming, scholarship to bring the war alive in an almost novelistic way. It is this gift for narrative that led contemporary critics to compare this book to War and Peace, and call it a "modern Iliad." Now over 50 years old, This Hallowed Ground remains one of the best-loved and admired general Civil War books.
-
-
Still one of the best!
- By Homer on 04-21-19
By: Bruce Catton
-
The Civil War
- By: Bruce Catton
- Narrated by: Barrett Whitener
- Length: 7 hrs and 59 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
For a person seeking a single volume to serve as a captivating introduction and a dependable guide through all the maze of battles and issues of the Civil War, this is an audiobook without parallel. Bruce Catton understood the Civil War - its participants and battles - and he unfolds it with skill and simplicity.
-
-
good book, fair sound
- By Paul on 12-16-02
By: Bruce Catton
-
Grant Moves South
- By: Bruce Catton
- Narrated by: Bronson Pinchot
- Length: 17 hrs and 58 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
A Pulitzer Prize-winning historian's acclaimed Civil War history of the complex man and controversial Union commander whose battlefield brilliance ensured the downfall of the Confederacy. Preeminent Civil War historian Bruce Catton narrows his focus on commander Ulysses S. Grant, whose bold tactics and relentless dedication to the Union ultimately ensured a Northern victory in the nation's bloodiest conflict.
-
-
Riveting history with a great narration
- By Roberta Rothwell on 01-11-18
By: Bruce Catton
-
The Cornfield
- Antietam's Bloody Turning Point
- By: David A. Welker
- Narrated by: L.J. Ganser
- Length: 13 hrs and 5 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
For generations of Americans, the word Antietam - the name of a bucolic stream in western Maryland - held the same sense of horror and carnage that the date 9/11 does for Americans today. But Antietam eclipses even this modern tragedy as America's single bloodiest day, on which 22,000 men became casualties in a war to determine our nation's future.
-
-
Micro history at its finest
- By Amanda Tyler on 04-07-24
By: David A. Welker
-
The Coming Fury
- The Centennial History of the Civil War, Volume 1
- By: Bruce Catton
- Narrated by: Nelson Runger
- Length: 20 hrs and 14 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
> The New York Times hailed this trilogy as “one of the greatest historical accomplishments of our time”. With stunning detail and insights, America’s foremost Civil War historian recreates the war from its opening months to its final, bloody end. Each volume delivers a complete listening experience. The Coming Fury (Volume 1) covers the split Democratic Convention in the spring of 1860 to the first battle of Bull Run.
-
-
History As It Should Be
- By Bryan on 07-19-11
By: Bruce Catton
-
Mr. Lincoln's Army
- By: Bruce Catton
- Narrated by: Kevin T. Collins
- Length: 17 hrs and 20 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
A magnificent history of the opening years of the Civil War by Pulitzer Prize-winning author Bruce Catton. The first book in Bruce Catton's Pulitzer Prize-winning Army of the Potomac Trilogy, Mr. Lincoln's Army is a riveting history of the early years of the Civil War, when a fledgling Union Army took its stumbling first steps under the command of the controversial general George McClellan.
-
-
Very poor reader with great material
- By L Day on 07-28-16
By: Bruce Catton
-
This Hallowed Ground
- A History of the Civil War
- By: Bruce Catton
- Narrated by: David Drummond
- Length: 18 hrs and 55 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
This audiobook is the classic one-volume history of the American Civil War by Pulitzer Prize winner Bruce Catton. Covering events from the prelude of the conflict to the death of Lincoln, Catton blends a gripping narrative with deep, yet unassuming, scholarship to bring the war alive in an almost novelistic way. It is this gift for narrative that led contemporary critics to compare this book to War and Peace, and call it a "modern Iliad." Now over 50 years old, This Hallowed Ground remains one of the best-loved and admired general Civil War books.
-
-
Still one of the best!
- By Homer on 04-21-19
By: Bruce Catton
-
The Civil War
- By: Bruce Catton
- Narrated by: Barrett Whitener
- Length: 7 hrs and 59 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
For a person seeking a single volume to serve as a captivating introduction and a dependable guide through all the maze of battles and issues of the Civil War, this is an audiobook without parallel. Bruce Catton understood the Civil War - its participants and battles - and he unfolds it with skill and simplicity.
-
-
good book, fair sound
- By Paul on 12-16-02
By: Bruce Catton
-
Grant Moves South
- By: Bruce Catton
- Narrated by: Bronson Pinchot
- Length: 17 hrs and 58 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
A Pulitzer Prize-winning historian's acclaimed Civil War history of the complex man and controversial Union commander whose battlefield brilliance ensured the downfall of the Confederacy. Preeminent Civil War historian Bruce Catton narrows his focus on commander Ulysses S. Grant, whose bold tactics and relentless dedication to the Union ultimately ensured a Northern victory in the nation's bloodiest conflict.
-
-
Riveting history with a great narration
- By Roberta Rothwell on 01-11-18
By: Bruce Catton
-
The Cornfield
- Antietam's Bloody Turning Point
- By: David A. Welker
- Narrated by: L.J. Ganser
- Length: 13 hrs and 5 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
For generations of Americans, the word Antietam - the name of a bucolic stream in western Maryland - held the same sense of horror and carnage that the date 9/11 does for Americans today. But Antietam eclipses even this modern tragedy as America's single bloodiest day, on which 22,000 men became casualties in a war to determine our nation's future.
-
-
Micro history at its finest
- By Amanda Tyler on 04-07-24
By: David A. Welker
-
Lincoln's Lieutenants
- The High Command of the Army of the Potomac
- By: Stephen W. Sears
- Narrated by: George Guidall
- Length: 32 hrs and 2 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
The high command of the Army of the Potomac was a changeable, often dysfunctional band of brothers, going through the fires of war under seven commanding generals in three years, until Grant came east in 1864. The men in charge all too frequently appeared to be fighting against the administration in Washington instead of for it, increasingly cast as political pawns facing down a vindictive congressional Committee on the Conduct of the War.
-
-
Good, but not what I thought
- By Paul S. on 08-10-17
By: Stephen W. Sears
-
War on the Waters
- The Union and Confederate Navies, 1861–1865
- By: James M. McPherson
- Narrated by: Joe Barrett
- Length: 8 hrs and 55 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Although previously undervalued for their strategic impact because they represented only a small percentage of total forces, the Union and Confederate navies were crucial to the outcome of the Civil War. In War on the Waters, James M. McPherson has crafted an enlightening, at times harrowing, and ultimately thrilling account of the war’s naval campaigns and their military leaders. McPherson recounts how the Union navy’s blockade of the Confederate coast, leaky as a sieve in the war’s early months, became increasingly effective as it choked off vital imports and exports.
-
-
From Offshore, This War Looks Completely Different
- By John on 04-30-21
-
Terrible Swift Sword
- The Life of General Philip H. Sheridan
- By: Joseph Wheelan
- Narrated by: R.C. Bray
- Length: 14 hrs and 20 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Alongside Ulysses S. Grant and William Tecumseh Sherman, Philip H. Sheridan is the least known of the triumvirate of generals most responsible for winning the Civil War. Yet, before Sherman's famous march through Georgia, it was General Sheridan who introduced scorched-earth warfare to the South, and it was his Cavalry Corps that compelled Robert E. Lee's surrender at Appomattox Courthouse. Sheridan's innovative cavalry tactics and "total war" strategy became staples of 20th-century warfare.
-
-
Full of history but just a little long
- By Dennis on 09-17-13
By: Joseph Wheelan
-
Strange and Obscure Stories of the Civil War
- By: Tim Rowland
- Narrated by: Fred Sanders
- Length: 5 hrs and 45 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Strange and Obscure Stories of the Civil War is an entertaining look at the Civil War stories that don’t get told, and the misadventures you haven’t read about in history books. Share in all the humorous and strange events that took place behind the scenes of some of the most famous Civil War moments.
-
-
INTERESTING & FUNNY
- By The Louligan on 08-01-14
By: Tim Rowland
-
Shiloh
- A Novel
- By: Shelby Foote
- Narrated by: Peter Berkrot
- Length: 4 hrs and 54 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
This fictional recreation of the Battle of Shiloh in April 1862 is a stunning work of imaginative history, from Shelby Foote, beloved historian of the Civil War. Shiloh conveys not only the bloody choreography of Union and Confederate troops through the woods near Pittsburg Landing, Tennessee, but the inner movements of the combatants' hearts and minds.
-
-
Great so detailed
- By chris calabrese on 05-06-19
By: Shelby Foote
-
A Worse Place than Hell
- How the Civil War Battle of Fredericksburg Changed a Nation
- By: John Matteson
- Narrated by: David Colacci
- Length: 21 hrs
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
December 1862 drove the United States toward a breaking point. The Battle of Fredericksburg shattered Union forces and Northern confidence. As Abraham Lincoln's government threatened to fracture, this critical moment also tested five extraordinary individuals whose lives reflect the soul of a nation. The changes they underwent led to profound repercussions in the country's law, literature, politics, and popular mythology. Taken together, their stories offer a striking restatement of what it means to be American.
-
-
Fantastic Intertwining!
- By Peter H. Christensen on 09-02-21
By: John Matteson
-
For Cause and Comrades
- Why Men Fought in the Civil War
- By: James M. McPherson
- Narrated by: David Colacci
- Length: 9 hrs and 13 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
James McPherson shows that, contrary to what many scholars believe, the soldiers of the Civil War remained powerfully convinced of the ideals for which they fought throughout the conflict. Motivated by duty and honor, and often by religious faith, these men wrote frequently of their firm belief in the cause for which they fought: the principles of liberty, freedom, justice, and patriotism. For Cause and Comrades lets these soldiers tell their own stories in their own words to create an account that is both deeply moving and far truer than most books on war.
-
-
Ambitious idea but falls short
- By Matt M on 08-03-20
-
The War for the Common Soldier
- How Men Thought, Fought, and Survived in Civil War Armies
- By: Peter S. Carmichael
- Narrated by: Walter Dixon
- Length: 14 hrs and 32 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
How did Civil War soldiers endure the brutal and unpredictable existence of army life during the conflict? This question is at the heart of Peter S. Carmichael's sweeping new study of men at war.
-
-
A flowing historical narrative
- By Rick Lynch on 08-17-24
-
Pickett's Charge
- A New Look at Gettysburg's Final Attack
- By: Phillip Thomas Tucker PhD
- Narrated by: Eric Jason Martin
- Length: 19 hrs and 52 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Pickett's Charge is a detailed analysis of one of the most iconic and defining events in American history. This book presents a much-needed fresh look, including the unvarnished truths and ugly realities, about the unforgettable story. With the luxury of hindsight, historians have long denounced the folly of Lee's attack, but this work reveals the tactical brilliance of a master plan that went awry. Special emphasis is placed on the common soldiers on both sides, especially the non-Virginia attackers outside of Pickett's Virginia Division.
-
-
Worst CW book ever. Can't rate it low enough. It deserves negative 5 stars in all categories
- By rbergen on 05-10-18
-
The Impending Crisis
- America Before the Civil War: 1848-1861
- By: David M. Potter, Don E. Fehrenbacher
- Narrated by: Eric Martin
- Length: 22 hrs and 41 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
David M. Potter's Pulitzer Prize-winning The Impending Crisis is the definitive history of antebellum America. Potter's sweeping epic masterfully charts the chaotic forces that climaxed with the outbreak of the Civil War: westward expansion, the divisive issue of slavery, the Dred Scott decision, John Brown's uprising, the ascension of Abraham Lincoln, and the drama of Southern secession.
-
-
A Slog for Sure
- By Brux on 04-13-17
By: David M. Potter, and others
-
Abraham Lincoln
- A Presidential Life
- By: James McPherson
- Narrated by: John McDonough
- Length: 1 hr and 55 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
In this compelling biography, McPherson follows Abraham Lincoln from his early frontier days to his turbulent years in the White House. This concise yet comprehensive account reveals why Lincoln still remains a quintessential American icon.
-
-
In depth
- By Pat on 04-23-12
By: James McPherson
-
Civil War of 1812
- American Citizens, British Subjects, Irish Rebels, & Indian Allies
- By: Alan Taylor
- Narrated by: Andrew Garman
- Length: 20 hrs and 36 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Pulitzer Prize-winning historian Alan Taylor tells the riveting story of a war that redefined North America. In a world of double identities, slippery allegiances, and porous borders, the leaders of the American Republic and the British Empire struggled to control their own diverse peoples. Taylor’s vivid narrative of an often brutal—sometimes farcical—war reveals much about the tangled origins of the United States and Canada.
-
-
A proper history of an obscure epoch
- By margot on 04-22-12
By: Alan Taylor
What listeners say about Terrible Swift Sword
Average customer ratingsReviews - Please select the tabs below to change the source of reviews.
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
- Amazon Customer
- 06-22-15
It's Catton!
This is from his over all military history of the Civil War. His OTHER trilogy was about t Union eStern army. the Army of The Potomac.
My Dad was deeply effected even as a boy when Union Veterans who were neighbors would tell of the war as they sat and rocked on a porch next door to the house where Dad's family lived. There eager reverence for comrades AND enemy soldiers lot Dad's eyes and ignited a devotion to Civil War history.
Bruce Catton had the same good fortune. In lectures my father gave and in Catton's writing that eager devotion to the people of America and their stories was evident.
Catton wrote with strict adherence to principles of reporting. Facts. And both he and Dad ALSO had a warm feeling for the individual soldiers and their families. The combination of Journalism ethic and Human carding makes for electrifying,,, and trust worthy,,, reading and listening.
Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
You voted on this review!
You reported this review!
2 people found this helpful
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
- J
- 01-13-18
Incredible narration by Nelson Runger
didnt think I would get into this book... I was absolutely wrong! now I have to finish the series.
Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
You voted on this review!
You reported this review!
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
- Grumpy 63
- 03-24-21
Classic
Narrator was excellent and concise. Still holds up despite its age. A classic. Terrific book.
Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
You voted on this review!
You reported this review!
1 person found this helpful
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
- Petroglypher
- 02-21-18
A decent trilogy with good information
The three books are filled with good information which may not be well known. I find the "clicking sound the narrator makes annoying.
Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
You voted on this review!
You reported this review!
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
- Bryan
- 07-12-11
No Better History of the Civil War
I have enjoyed Bruce Catton's trilogy of the Civil War since it came out in the 1960's. I still have the dog-eared paperbacks (priced $1.25 so you know how old they are) and am always tempted to pick them up and re-read this shining historian.
This is the middle of the three covering the major battles and strategies following the opening battle of Bull Run, which is detailed in "The Coming Fury". Mr. Catton covers all the different theaters of the war - including the stratgies of both North and South in dealing with the one major power of the time - Great Britain.
Mr. Catton is a master of narrative and story. We all know how this issue was resolved in the end, but the details and personalities of some of the players who have faded into the mists of our collective memory come alive in his expert hands. The growing influence of George McClellan and his ultimate hold on the Army of the Potomac, the battle-tested drinker U.S. Grant, the almost ubiquitous Benjamin Butler - all these major and minor characters come to life in this wonderful history.
This is America's defining moment of the 19th Century and Bruce Catton describes the hardships and heartaches and heroism that our country experienced in this cataclysm.
This isn't some boring history of "just the facts". This is a great read, a wonderful story, and a master of history. I can't recommend it highly enough.
Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
You voted on this review!
You reported this review!
17 people found this helpful
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
- PW
- 09-04-18
Bruce Catton in a league of his own.
Great narrative about critical time in US history. Catton brings to life the story and the characters. Brilliant story telling. Hard to turn off.
Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
You voted on this review!
You reported this review!
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
- J.B.
- 11-22-17
Fuitless Battles, Many Dead, Emancipaiton or Not
Terrible Swift Sword: The Centennial History of the Civil War, Vol. 2, by Bruce Catton, Narrated by Nelson Runger. This compilation is a mid-1960s, deep and rewarding dive into the pre, contemporary and post-civil war political milieu. In this, the second part of the three-book series, Mr. Catton provides an understanding of the early Civil War, the war’s objectified purpose, its initial skirmishes and battles, and the war’s effect upon American society.
This book provides a lot of information on the weak and infrequently purposeful personalities that conducted the Civil War. In addition, the manner in which the story is told; ever so easily captures your attention and keeps you - considering - what was this war really about?
Terrible Swift Sword teaches: Men, who participate in this world, have a duty to partake. Partaking is assessing and then letting go into action. Those are the men with the purposeful personalities, i.e. A. Lincoln and R. E. Lee. Then there are those who fail to assess and fail to go out and only procrastinate, i.e. such as self-proclaimed genius general G. B. McClellan. One of the truly great fools of all time.
As a result, you can read the trials and tribulations of our 150 years ago politicians and military commanders and get a broad understanding of how the generals conceived of, prepared for and managed their battles, and the politicians the affairs of state. What you learn you can apply to today’s happenings and understand the incompetence and callowness of today’s leaders by thinking back to our past leaders acts and undertakings. Yet, again, you can learn of true competence and strong courageous leadership as well.
Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
You voted on this review!
You reported this review!
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
- lanny kaufman
- 09-08-11
The Civil War gets under way (Shelby Foote)
Where does Terrible Swift Sword rank among all the audiobooks you???ve listened to so far?
Catton is a master story teller. This book is right up there with all of the Civil War books. The best is Stillness at Appomattox which I wish Audible would get. I think I heard it a number of years ago from Books on Tape. Of course, Shelby Foote is more thorough, but the military maneuvers in Foote's books are just too compliacated for me. Catton also loses me in some military strategy but he returns to the politial scene often enough. Catton writes extremely well, and if you want more of the same read the Army of the Potomac series, which as I mentioned in passing, Audible should get hold of if they are available. I''ll admit that I am a Civil War buff and have dragged my wife to several battlefields despite her protestations. On a recent car trip I tried to stop at Spottsyvania but was overruled. If you can't get to some of the battlefields listen to audible with these type of books.
What other book might you compare Terrible Swift Sword to and why?
Of course it is part of the series with The Coming Fury and Never Call Retreat, and if you liked one you will like the other, though The Coming Fury doesn't have the battle drama, because it is an introduction to the Civil War. Shelby Foote's trilogy is also outstanding and is available on audio, though more lengthy. I also bought Battle Cry of Freedom but didn't have a chance to listen to it yet. I am sure that I will enjoy it. In short, Bruce Catton is a master story teller of the Civil War, so get started and enjoy.
What does Nelson Runger bring to the story that you wouldn???t experience if you just read the book?
Nelson Runger and Kate Reading are the best narrators that I have ever heard. I love the way Nelson Runger intones his reading. I loved his First American (Franklin) reading and heard him on Books on Tape on Eisenhower and an abridged version of Adams. I wish Audible could get him on The Rise and Fall of the Third Reich. Every word of his is a delectable morsel. I hope to get his other books on American histroy and biography. Sometimes, I feel a little saturated with American history, but I just can't enough of Runger. I am even going to listen to another Benjamin Franklin biography. Some of you may think he is too slow, but I love his slow intonation which has a little surprise and sarcasm mixed in. Could anyone persuade him to read The Decline and Fall of the Roman Empire? I could then turn into an ancient history scholar at the drop of a hat.
Did you have an extreme reaction to this book? Did it make you laugh or cry?
I am always chuckling at the machinations of the Civil War generals, though Shelby Foote is a downright humorist when it comes to this. Of course, I am glad to fight the Civil War in my armchair at the distance of 150 years. Looking back, it is easy to see the mistakes of Maclellan, Burnside and Hooker, but imagine the thousands of lives over which these men were responsible for. As of today I have fought the Civil War about 50 times and can never get tired of the drama, issues, and importance of that conflict. Catton manages to bring it alive for the 50th time for me. Deep down I have to cry for the 600,000 boys who lost their lives both North and South. I wish the slavery question could have been resolved in the times of Franklin and Washington. But alas!
Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
You voted on this review!
You reported this review!
26 people found this helpful
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
- C. Jay Robbins
- 11-03-24
Quality of the narration
Excellent voice coupled with a well written popular history. A definite listen to. Detailed but not mind boggling.
Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
You voted on this review!
You reported this review!
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
- TRM002
- 01-05-23
Great listen
Anything by Bruce Catton is great. The narrator is excellent. The only issue I found is that I think this is an older recording and the volume and clarity seemed to come and go. I got used to it eventually but it was a little bothersome early on. Would still recommend this.
Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
You voted on this review!
You reported this review!