Preview
  • The Year of Peril

  • America in 1942
  • By: Tracy Campbell
  • Narrated by: Paul Heitsch
  • Length: 14 hrs and 7 mins
  • 4.5 out of 5 stars (47 ratings)

Prime logo Prime members: New to Audible?
Get 2 free audiobooks during trial.
Pick 1 audiobook a month from our unmatched collection.
Listen all you want to thousands of included audiobooks, Originals, and podcasts.
Access exclusive sales and deals.
Premium Plus auto-renews for $14.95/mo after 30 days. Cancel anytime.

The Year of Peril

By: Tracy Campbell
Narrated by: Paul Heitsch
Try for $0.00

$14.95/month after 30 days. Cancel anytime.

Buy for $17.90

Buy for $17.90

Pay using card ending in
By confirming your purchase, you agree to Audible's Conditions of Use and Amazon's Privacy Notice. Taxes where applicable.

Publisher's summary

A fascinating chronicle of how the character of American society revealed itself under the duress of World War II.

The Second World War exists in the American historical imagination as a time of unity and optimism. In 1942, however, after a series of defeats in the Pacific and the struggle to establish a beachhead on the European front, America seemed to be on the brink of defeat and was beginning to splinter from within.

Exploring this precarious moment, Tracy Campbell paints a portrait of the deep social, economic, and political fault lines that pitted factions of citizens against each other in the post-Pearl Harbor era, even as the nation mobilized, government-aided industrial infrastructure blossomed, and parents sent their sons off to war. This captivating look at how American society responded to the greatest stress experienced since the Civil War reveals the various ways, both good and bad, that the trauma of 1942 forced Americans to redefine their relationship with democracy in ways that continue to affect us today.

©2020 Tracy Campbell (P)2020 Blackstone Publishing
  • Unabridged Audiobook
  • Categories: History
activate_Holiday_promo_in_buybox_DT_T2

What listeners say about The Year of Peril

Average customer ratings
Overall
  • 4.5 out of 5 stars
  • 5 Stars
    31
  • 4 Stars
    12
  • 3 Stars
    1
  • 2 Stars
    2
  • 1 Stars
    1
Performance
  • 4.5 out of 5 stars
  • 5 Stars
    23
  • 4 Stars
    11
  • 3 Stars
    3
  • 2 Stars
    1
  • 1 Stars
    1
Story
  • 4.5 out of 5 stars
  • 5 Stars
    26
  • 4 Stars
    9
  • 3 Stars
    3
  • 2 Stars
    1
  • 1 Stars
    0

Reviews - Please select the tabs below to change the source of reviews.

Sort by:
Filter by:
  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    5 out of 5 stars

An excellent piece of history

Both enjoyable and thoroughly researched. A great addition to the history of WW II. Recommended!

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
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    5 out of 5 stars

History does indeed repeat

An excellent review of one of the most tumultuous years in history. A great reminder of how resilient we are and yet how much we cling to the past

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
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    5 out of 5 stars

21st Century Parallels Abound

While we may disagree with some of the author’s inferences and conclusions at the end, this is still a great read. It reminds one of the futility of trusting in world leaders or finding satisfaction in a particular economic model. What is the most striking to me is the parallels between 1942 America and 2021 America. It seems that most years are years of peril in America.

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.

You voted on this review!

You reported this review!

  • Overall
    4 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    3 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    4 out of 5 stars

Pause please

The narrator' consistent failure to pause between sections made for awkward bumpy transititions. Good story overall though.

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
    4 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    2 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    5 out of 5 stars

Congress has always been worthless

Fascinating stories, some that I have known for years, others never heard or read in my 68 years.
Most definitely proves that Congress is a miserable lot of greedy, self-serving liars, fools, and idiots.
And that Big Government is the enemy of We The People.

The only thing that has changed in 80 years is that blacks are now in control of politics, not racist white Democrats.
Nobody should join the military services to sacrifice while everybody at home benefits financially.

I would have enjoyed this book so much more with a great narrator like Titus Welliver or Elliot Gould.

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.

You voted on this review!

You reported this review!

  • Overall
    1 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    1 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    4 out of 5 stars

irritating & frustrating book

I usually love listening to books about WWII, but not this one. Although the author's emphasis on the many divisions that existed in the US back then is important and interesting, the flaw in the book overwhelm that topic. The book feels very disorganized - the organization by month is not a good substitute for organization by topic. The presentation is superficial. Although some of its the quotes provide insight, many others add little and become very tedious. Finally, the narration got on my nerves - it was like an imitation of Edward R. Murrow's war reports from London. I'm only about half way through it and will not finish it.

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
    2 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    4 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    3 out of 5 stars

Disappointing

This book was reviewed favorably in the WSJ, but I found it disappointing. As an avid reader of WWII non-fiction, I can say with confidence that the author makes some obvious errors in recounting historical events for 1942. For example, the fact about some Doolittle Raider aircraft being “downed in Japan” is wildly inaccurate. If this is wrong, what else is misleading due to sloppy research? Also, the author takes the reader on a strangely irrelevant detour by reviewing the contraception and abortion practices in the U.S. in 1942. To me, it seems a crude attempt to inject into the narrative an editorial supporting modern-day abortions to avoid the back-alley operations of 1942. The author, the editors, and the fact-checkers can do better than this.

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.

You voted on this review!

You reported this review!

5 people found this helpful