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)

A must read if you love America.

This book is FULL of facts most Americans don't know about. the fact at one point in the beginning of the war we only had enough black powder for each soldier to fire 3 shots. Folks we are lucky we have our nation. You''ll not regret reading this history. George Washington was a brave man.

Fantastic story-telling!!

I am still amazed that those early American soldiers were able to defeat those Brits [thank goodness for us]. I cannot imagine the horrors they endured. I really enjoyed "seeing" things from England's POV as well; I was able to understand their perspective; how they might think of us as "upstarts" and "traitors". I also hadn't known much about the Loyalists already in the US - life must have been very difficult for them, indeed.

I wish it was longer!!

invaluable detailing of the war of 1776.

Excellant recounting of the critical first days of Washington's army and the events that surrounded it. I listened to the fne audio version, following the detailed movememts of both armies on Google maps. Amazing what I did not previously know and/or had not read elsewhere.

Narrow Deep Dive

It was good and delivered on telling a story about the year 1776 well; however the story hones in on generals from both sides of the war with sparse information about legislators or the populous.

Much more of a military read than I expected but still quite enjoyable.

Fascinating content, soporific narration

Would you consider the audio edition of 1776 to be better than the print version?

Probably not. The audio edition suffered from lack of maps, which would have helped a lot in understanding the extremely detailed descriptions of battlefield topography. Also, the narration was monotonous. McCullough is a fine author and historian but should not narrate his work.

Who was your favorite character and why?

Washington is the only "character" into whom we really get much insight, so I'll go with him.

Would you be willing to try another one of David McCullough’s performances?

Sure. His narration didn't ruin the book for me; it just wasn't very good.

Was there a moment in the book that particularly moved you?

The speeches by some members of the British Parliament were touching, especially regarding the justification of the Americans' cause.

Any additional comments?

Learned a great deal and would recommend the book.

Authentic

This is an excellent audiobook. The use of archival letters spaced throughout provide authenticity and great detail. The listener gets to know the personality and thoughts of principal players. There is some unnecessary repetition of famous quotes, though, and the pacing can be slow. I loved this audiobook, but would have liked to hear more about other, related aspects in America during this time such as civilian life and the economy.

Highly recommended.

Interesting and Entertaining

An interesting way to get the "feel" of the events and the time. The style of the author combined with the narrative provides a good flow and a sense of some of the perhaps subtler issues of the storyline. While it may not be useful for the "true historian" it was entertaining for the part-time one.

History comes alive

I listen to a lot of audible books, And I’m very particular about the performance as well as the content. I have always loved David McCullough‘s books, my first one was Seabiscuit, but I love history and I love George Washington and mr McCullough’s sequence piece of 1776 is thorough and if you will listen more than once you will learn so much about how he has meticulously put everything together. I highly recommend this book to be listened to over and over -to put yourself in those patriots’Place, it’s where we need to be, They sacrificed much, I am in awe. I also think by listening to his other books as well that speak of our founding fathers and historical situations can only bring everything foremost in our minds to help overlap personalities in these events to create this moving picture in our mind.
I became sympathetic for the Tories when they left New York and sat on the boats and said goodbye to their colonial lives of which they would never see again. I also liked his description of the British generals which was very interesting. It’s hard to get the whole picture and I like his easy reading style, it’s like your grandpa‘s reading to you.

So good I damaged my car

The contents and the reading of this audiobook are both amazing.
When Washington crossed the Delaware, I got so amped and distracted that I backed into a pole.
So yeah, it’s that good. If you have any interest at all, just listen to it.

Excellent

McCullough superbly tells the story of this gut-wrenching year in our nation's history. The cause for independence was so close to being lost, but the perseverance of Washington and his troops made victory a reality.