List Price: $16.95
www.amazon.com's Price: $11.53
You Save: $5.42 (32%)
Condition: New
Availability: Usually ships in 24 hours
Release Date: 2006-10-10
Average Customer Rating: 4.0
Lowest New Price: $9.95
Lowest Used Price: $1.19
| American History MasterpieceI really enjoyed reading this book. I didn't know much about Andrew Jackson before reading the book but I learned a great deal in a short time. The book flowed well and followed Jackson from birth, his early life, the revolution, his business ventures, duels, through wars, the presidency, and death. The material was so interesting I found myself flying through the book.
Jackson was involved with the Indian wars, Florida, New Orleans, and even Texas be it in battle or influence. I think everyone intersted in American history and important figures of our past should read this book.
Comments on abridged CD version"Andrew Jackson - His Life and Times" - H.W. Brands
The following comments are for the abridged CD audio book version of "Andrew Jackson - His Life and Times" by H.W. Brands. Chuck Montgomery reads the book. This is a Random House Audio edition.
This listener found the narrator, Chuck Montgomery, an excellent speaker whose clear pronunciation and moderate pacing a pleasure to listen too. Mr. Montgomery has, in this reviewer's opinion, an appealing Southern tone to his diction that complements the subject matter.
This audio book consist 7 compact disks with a total playtime of approximately 8 hours. The disks are secured in two standard fan fold multi CD holders. These two inserts slide into the external packaging box. Each CD holder has identification on the spine listing the CD numbers. I mention this because not all audio book manufactures add this helpful numbering feature.
For several years I did a significant amount of business travel. I filled those hours listening to numerous non-fiction audio books most of them in the history-biography category. Many were ok, some good and very few compelling listening. "Andrew Jackson" falls into the latter category. There are two reasons for this personal judgment. The subject matter just crackles with exciting events and dramatic situations. In addition the author has a brilliant knack for bringing to life historical events and personalities. This authors talent was also evident in another audio book I have experienced, "Traitor to His Class: The Privileged Life and Radical Presidency of Franklin Delano Roosevelt".
I will not even attempt to summaries the numerous actions and personalities covered in this book. The author does a more that creditable job of keeping his focus on Jackson. He does divert to elaborate upon the events and controversies of the times - just enough to make you want to follow up on, say, Sam Houston, Texas Independence, Aaron Burr, Indian Wars in Florida and other topics that kindled my interest.
My readings in American History have been confined, primarily, to the Revolutionary and Civil War Periods. I found the subject matter very informative and useful in what transpired between those two events.
Look for author Brands history lectures on YouTube. I found them most interesting and informative.
Entertaining, But Not Very In-DepthWhile H.W. Brands covers Jackson's early years in satisfying detail, Brands covers his middle military career less thoroughly, and he rushes through Jackson's presidency, an area that one would think deserves the greatest focus. I certainly don't feel like I wasted my time, but I am definitely interested in finding another work on Jackson that covers his life in greater detail.
There are better choices for a Jackson biographyI purchased this book based on the favorable reviews on this site, but I was disappointed with it. Some significant events in Jackson's life are covered too briefly. The book is not one that "pulls you in" and I found it tedious to get through 560 pages. (Not like a bio written by David McCullough).
Excellent Account Of an Important American LifeIn Andrew Jackson: His Life and Times, H.W. Brands paints a picture of the man who was scarred by battle, driven by ambition, and fiercely committed to maintaining the union of states formed through the American Revolution. Brands devotes much of his work to the period which led up to Jackson's presidency: his early life, participation in the Revolutionary War as a child, a short career as an attorney, and then his military career devoted primarily to ousting the British and Native Americans from the soil he believed rightly belonged to the American people.
This is one of the more important lives in American history beyond the founding fathers. Jackson shaped the political landscape between Jefferson and Lincoln. He was the first man of the people, and many would attempt to follow in his footsteps. Brands drives home the point that though Jackson was from a southern state and was a slave owner, he was always fully committed to the keeping the states united. While others began to hint that the union would fail over the slavery issue, he would hear none of it.
Brands tells the story in a way that the life of Jackson is unfolded carefully, giving just enough background to fill in blank spots and just enough detail to inform and also keep the reader engaged. The only shortfall in this account is that Brands spends relatively little time of Jackson's presidency compared to his military career. Beyond that, this is an excellent account of the life of an important American.
Product DescriptionNational Bestseller
In this, the first major single-volume biography of Andrew Jackson in decades, H.W. Brands reshapes our understanding of this fascinating man, and of the Age of Democracy that he ushered in.
An orphan at a young age and without formal education or the family lineage of the Founding Fathers, Jackson showed that the Presidency was not the exclusive province of the wealthy and the well-born but could truly be held by a man of the people. On a majestic, sweeping scale Brands re-creates Jackson’s rise from his hardscrabble roots to his days as frontier lawyer, then on to his heroic victory in the Battle of New Orleans, and finally to the White House. Capturing Jackson’s outsized life and deep impact on American history, Brands also explores his controversial actions, from his unapologetic expansionism to the disgraceful Trail of Tears. This is a thrilling portrait, in full, of the president who defined American democracy.
Read more...
Similar Products:The First American: The Life and Times of Benjamin Franklin
T.R.: The Last Romantic
Traitor to His Class: The Privileged Life and Radical Presidency of Franklin Delano Roosevelt
The Last Founding Father: James Monroe and a Nation's Call to Greatness
A Country of Vast Designs: James K. Polk, the Mexican War and the Conquest of the American Continent
|
