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)

Must Read History of US Fight For Independence

The story of the patriots who liberated the US colonies from the tyranny of British rule is one that many Americans do not understand. This book shows what true sacrifices were made by the men and women who gave their lives to create one of the greatest democracies in the world. People today may not be strong enough to endure the hardships laid out by the author as I learned about our original Congress forsaking the troops in the field to protect their growing personal powers by denying them the supplies required, and readily available, to fight the British. Our founding fathers were not the real heroes it was the men in the snow marching with bare feet and literally leaving their blood from their frostbitten feet on every battlefield in the war.

This is a must read for all Americans to understand and appreciate what we have today.

More please!

1776 is an excellent telling of the beginning of the American revolution. The entire book only covers the tale end of 1775-the very beginning of 1777. It definitely leaves you wanting more. It's pretty fantastic.

Great Book

I will be returning to listen again.
Excellent presentation.
I especially enjoyed hearing the author read his own work.

Almost part of the U.K.

What made the experience of listening to 1776 the most enjoyable?

I guess I had previously heard that the revolutionary war was almost lost in the beginning, but after this book I can really appreciate just how close we came to losing and how lopsided the two warring armies were.

What did you like best about this story?

Great detail on what was happening. It was great to hear the colonial and British perspectives side by side.

Any additional comments?

Should be required reading in High School for US History.

Captivating!!

The writing is fresh, inspiring and vivid in it story telling. The research done for this masterpiece must have been truly exceptional, and paints a truer picture from all its angles of reference. A superb work.

what a great year, and what a great book.

great book with a great story I loved it. 1776 a year that made America.

1776-Great story-Great story telling!

If you could sum up 1776 in three words, what would they be?

captivating, historic, true

What did you like best about this story?

1776 begins the story of our nation- The United States of America.

What does David McCullough bring to the story that you wouldn’t experience if you just read the book?

Mr. McCullough brings the characters, our founding fathers, to life. He gives them personalities and feelings. I especially enjoy and appreciate when an author reads his/ her own work. One doesn't have to worry about the reader's interpretation of the author's words.

Was this a book you wanted to listen to all in one sitting?

No, I didn't want to listen to this book in one sitting. I listen to this book as I'm doing household chores (cooking, cleaning, folding wash) driving to work, exercising, and shopping. The book inspires me to begin each of these tasks so that I can more quickly get back to my book.

Every American should listen to this

I have an entirely new appreciation for our founding father. His commitment to our freedom is beyond belief.

A masterpiece

David McCullough is a master of taking a monumental amount of historical data and distilling it into an accurate, captivating narrative. This was by far the longest audio book I've listened to but it was a pleasure. His performance of the book is quite good as well, especially given that he is an author first and not an actor by trade.

awesome, but cut too short

Only wish it had been longer. I wanted to finish the whole war... took a bit too get used to the reader, he wasn't terrible but lacked some emotion sometimes. the content was fabulous