1776

By: David McCullough

Narrated by: David McCullough

Length: 11 hrs and 33 mins

Publisher's summary

In this stirring audiobook, David McCullough tells the intensely human story of those who marched with General George Washington in the year of the Declaration of Independence, when the whole American cause was riding on their success, without which all hope for independence would have been dashed and the noble ideals of the Declaration would have amounted to little more than words on paper.

Based on extensive research in both American and British archives, 1776 is the story of Americans in the ranks, men of every shape, size, and color, farmers, schoolteachers, shoemakers, no-accounts, and mere boys turned soldiers. And it is the story of the British commander, William Howe, and his highly disciplined redcoats, who looked on their rebel foes with contempt and fought with a valor too little known. But it is the American commander-in-chief who stands foremost: Washington, who had never before led an army in battle.

The darkest hours of that tumultuous year were as dark as any Americans have known. Especially in our own tumultuous time, 1776 is powerful testimony to how much is owed to a rare few in that brave founding epoch, and what a miracle it was that things turned out as they did.

Written as a companion work to his celebrated biography of John Adams, David McCullough's 1776 is another landmark in the literature of American history.

©2005 David McCullough (P)2005 Simon and Schuster Inc. AUDIOWORKS is an imprint of Simon and Schuster Audio Division, Simon and Schuster Inc.

Critic reviews

• 2005 Audie Award Nominee, Narration by the Author
• 2005 Publishers Weekly Listen Up Award, Nonfiction

"A first-rate historical account." (Booklist)

"A narrative tour de force, exhibiting all the hallmarks the author is known for: fascinating subject matter, expert research, and detailed, graceful prose.... Simply put, this is history writing at its best from one of its top practitioners." (Publishers Weekly)

"A stirring and timely work, reminding us that it's soldiers rather than 'tavern patriots and windy politicians' who have always paid the price of American idealism and determined its successes. (The New York Times)

Great book about a pivotal year

I really enjoyed the book and the narration. The story is familiar but the telling here is very lively and moving. Great insight into the character of the major participants- Washington in particular.

Wish I Had to Read This For School

I don't often read non-fiction books, but out of all the major wars that the United States has fought in, I felt like I knew the least about the Revolutionary War so figured this would be a good book to pick up. For a history book, 1776 was quite entertaining. David McCullough who both wrote and narrates the audio book does an incredible job of painting a picture not only of the war but society during that time. The first half of the book which talked a lot about the British side of the war which is something I feel like I either missed in school or wasn't taught.

From the crossing of the Delaware to snippets of letters and journals from the lowest ranking soldiers, 1776 does a great job of building that timeframe in an easy to understand format, and for that I really enjoyed reading it. More then anything the triumph of America after all odds were stacked against it in 1776 is truly remarkable.

A masterpiece of history writing

David McCullough has once again shown is preeminent mastery of history writing. This book is a dense history of a pivotal part of the American revolution, but despite being densely historical it is neither slow, nor confusing, nor breezy. McCullough also proves to be an excellent reader for audiobooks.

A Must Read

Well written, well documented and extremely engaging. A perfect introduction to the men, locations and extreme hardships of the Revolutionary War. This book underscores how nearly the American experiment failed, and how unlikely it was to succeed in its desire for Liberty.

'1776'

Great follow up to reading 'John Adams', in my opinion. Certainly dispells any notion of taking America's existence for granted. The story of the Continental Congress and the Declaration of Independence is not followed in detail here, as it would have detracted from this explanation of the military campaigns.

Great book

I really enjoyed diving deep into this pivotal year in US history. I highly recommend this book and author.

My only complaint is that the pause between chapters was akwardly long. There were several times I checked my device to see if it had crashed just as the narrator started talking again.

Great Play-by-Play of Pivotal American History

I was impressed with how thorough this was. This is the first time I have listened a David McCullough book, I was impressed with the different pieces of content that he found that gave support to the historical story line. Specifically letters written by Washington during times of turmoil that help us understand what he was thinking. It was interesting to compare that to his actions. Overall a great book, check it out!

Fantastic author,book and audio

This book and his other one John Adams are two of my favorites and I've read many.

400 warships in NY Harbor!!

As someone who lives in New York City and works in Newark, NJ, I felt the real presence of these past events all around me as I enjoyed this vivid recount of the events of 1776. Moving his army to New York City after brilliantly ejecting the British from Boston, Washington found himself confronting nearly 400 warships and tens of thousands of troops. "In fact, it was the largest expeditionary force of the eighteenth century, the largest, most powerful force ever sent forth from Britain or any nation."

Washington and his army abandoned New York, and, for a few miserable, rainy November days, encamped in Newark, just a quarter-mile from where I sit at Audible's headquarters. Their retreat south culminated in the famous surprise attack on the Hessian troops in Trenton. Now I get the significance of that painting of Washington crossing the Delaware.

Not every author is an effective narrator, but David McCullough's voice and delivery fit the material perfectly. I zoomed through this book by using the new Whispersync for Voice to alternate between the audiobook and the Kindle book, and when I read the text I continued to "hear" the evocative timbre and tone of McCullough's voice.

Amazing

Loved the detailed story of the beginning of the USA. Documented well and given in such an organized manner.