A Wicked War

Polk, Clay, Lincoln and the 1846 U.S. Invasion of Mexico

By: Amy S. Greenberg

Narrated by: Caroline Shaffer

Length: 12 hrs and 46 mins

Publisher's summary

A Wicked War presents the definitive history of the 1846 war between the United States and Mexico - a conflict that turned America into a continental power. Amy Greenberg describes the battles between American and Mexican armies, but also delineates the political battles between Democrats and Whigs - the former led by the ruthless Polk, the latter by the charismatic Henry Clay and a young representative from Illinois named Abraham Lincoln. Greenberg brilliantly recounts this key chapter in the creation of the United States with authority and narrative flair.

©2012 Amy Greenberg. (P)2012 HighBridge Company

Critic reviews

“Greenberg’s probing account of this war reveals its drama - and its very modern complexity.”( Publishers Weekly)

unnecessarily sarcastic

The manner in which the material is presented was off putting. More than once I contemplated returning the book, however, it was clearly we'll researched so I powered through. The reader puts it over the top with her impressions of southerners and foreigners. Anyone who buys a book like this is not ignorant of our nation's misteps and can do without the embellishments and rhetoric.

Tour de force.

This a special combination of amazing historical narrative with the perfect choice of narrator.

Once again I am outraged at my public miseducation as a child. We lionized a few presidents. I was an adult before I truly discovered Andrew Jackson. I never really bothered with the uninteresting Polk and after Greenberg's work it's clear why. His record hardly supports the jingoism of the fairly tales of childhood pedagogy.

Pulling back the curtain on American History

If you could sum up A Wicked War in three words, what would they be?

Greed, Lies, Racism.

Which character – as performed by Caroline Shaffer – was your favorite?

I do not thing there was a particular character that stood out. Rather she handled a range of different people and accents fairly well. At the beginning I was not sure I liked her handling of accents but as time wore on they seemed to come into their own and were quite enjoyable.

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

No it is far too long for one sitting.

The politics of the Mexican war

Greenberg has written a lively political history of the Mexican war and the substantial but disorganized opposition to it. Key players include Henry Clay, James K. Polk, Nicholas Trist, and Abraham Lincoln: all deftly characterized with a few well-chosen anecdotes. The military history is covered in broad strokes - for more detail on that, a better choice would be Martin Dugard's Training Ground. But if you want a clear and vivid picture of the machinations that led to the war and to its ultimate conclusion, this is the book for you.

There are obvious parallels with more recent wars, some of them opposed by many in the US, but Greenberg doesn't hit us over the head with that. Apart from a few somewhat anachronistic references to "embedded journalists," she leaves us to our own conclusions. This is political history, not politicized history.

Caroline Shaffer's narration is equally lively. At first it seemed discordantly "peppy" to me, but as I got used to her style of delivery, I realized her unflagging energy was keeping me drawn to the story. All in all, I really enjoyed it.

Should have been better

There are three main points that define this audiobook, the trite depictions of the title characters, the odd obsession with manliness, and most annoyingly, the unbearable accents. And it's almost as if the author collected personal biographies of three historical figures, needed the war to tie them all together.

To portray Clay and Lincoln so positively, as to approach sycophancy, and Polk so derisively, is in line with conventional historical understanding. But in the 21st century we might have expected more circumspect assessments of these men.

Early on, the author sets the tone that manliness will be a subject to be discussed. This may be understandable, but it renders the big picture a bit muddier. The author clearly recognizes that the supremacy of white Christianity, racism and slavery are at the core of this story, as she repeatedly uses the familiar racist terminology, on her own and through quotations, of manifest destiny and Anglo-Saxonism. Perhaps it's considered a given, but the focus on manliness and territorial expansion loses a bit, glossing over an overarching philosophy. Only in the epilogue does the author briefly, very briefly, tie historical threads together. A missed opportunity.

But by far, the biggest problem is the accents. I'm sure the narrator is quite talented with the accents. But considering no audio recordings are available, I'm not quite sure why they are necessary. I'd love to have said she did a bang-on John Tyler impersonation, but how would I know? At one point, the narrator uses a southern accent to relate a New Orleans newspaper article. A newspaper. In addition, Spanish and German accents strain credulity, and become cringeworthy. I don't typically critique narrators, and judging by the volume of accented voices, it must certainly have been the intent of, and approved by, the author. They are just unnecessary and distracting.

A little too much opinion, bias injected in.

A lot of opinion mixed in with historical facts. Narrator was not a good fit, needs to work on her accents and delivery. There was a lot of good information given but again, a lot of “commentary” mixed in with the info delivered.

Great book, I learned alot and enjoyed every minut

If you could sum up A Wicked War in three words, what would they be?

Enlightening historical drama

What did you like best about this story?

Unique perspectives from well known figures in our country's history

Any additional comments?

The only thing I was not a huge fan of was how the narrator spoke with a "mexican" accent when quoting mexicans. It seemed to imbue character to a quotation that may have been taken out of context.

Too many accents hurts the listening experience

The reader chose to do each of the book's many, many, many quotes (many of which weren't worth the author quoting), from a multitude of major and minor chacters, in a different accent. Her accents are done very well, but the constant change of voice is jarring and ultimately tedious.

Informative but poorly performed

The horrible southern accent used to read words of southern politicians is overly dramatic and, at times, just silly. Great book, though.

Loved the book. Loved the narrator.

Where does A Wicked War rank among all the audiobooks you’ve listened to so far?

Pretty up there. I will listen to it again.

What other book might you compare A Wicked War to and why?

This book is a refreshing and lively take on a period of our history that is largely ignored. I recently read Howard Zinn's "A People's History" and am enjoying these new perspectives. After all, there is some science and some "art" in the interpretation of history. As a woman, I've felt left out of a lot of it throughout my life.

Which character – as performed by Caroline Shaffer – was your favorite?

I loved this narrator!!! There was a nasty review I read here from someone who called her "that woman" and I question such a personal reaction. She has a very feminine voice and perhaps that is threatening to some people? She keeps the narration lively and fun and I appreciate that. And whether you like the choice of her voice, she certainly reads intelligently and with clear thought groupings. There's no reason to "hate."

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

No. This book is dense and requires breaks.

Any additional comments?

I'll be looking for more from Ms. Greenberg (wish I could be in a class of hers) and Ms. Shaffer.