John Paul Jones Audiobook By Evan Thomas cover art

John Paul Jones

Sailor, Hero, Father of the American Navy

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John Paul Jones

By: Evan Thomas
Narrated by: Dan Cashman
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John Paul Jones, at sea and in the heat of battle, was the great American hero of the Age of Sail. He was to history what Patrick O'Brian's Jack Aubrey and C. S. Forester's Horatio Hornblower are to fiction. Ruthless, indomitable, clever; he vowed to sail, as he put it, "in harm's way."

John Paul Jones is more than a great sea story. Jones is a character for the ages. John Adams called him the "most ambitious and intriguing officer in the American Navy." The renewed interest in the Founding Fathers reminds us of the great men who made this country, but John Paul Jones teaches us that it took fighters as well as thinkers, men driven by dreams of personal glory as well as high-minded principle to break free of the past and start a new world. Jones' spirit was classically American. Evan Thomas brings his skills as a biographer to this complex, protean figure whose life and rise are both thrilling as a tale of dauntless courage and revealing about the birth of a nation.

©2003 Evan Thomas (P)2003 Tantor Media, Inc. American Revolution Americas Armed Forces Biographies & Memoirs Historical Military Military & War Naval Forces Politicians Politics & Activism Revolution & Founding United States War War of 1812 Latin America Pirate

Critic reviews

"Superlative....Both Jones and his latest biographer can justly be praised as masters of their respective crafts." (Publishers Weekly)
"Evan Thomas captures all the incongruities, vanities, blazing ambition, and phenomenal courage of his subject." (David McCullough, author of John Adams)
"With the skill appropriate to a polished journalist, Thomas chronicles the short, but glorious, life of a brilliant, but frustratingly difficult, man, who was the first American naval hero....This is a fine account of the life of an admirable, but deeply flawed, man." (Booklist)
Well-researched Biography • Insightful Character Analysis • Excellent Reader • Complex Hero • Detailed Naval History

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The summary is correct: the description of Jones' engagement on USS Bonhomme Richard with HMS Serapis was indeed engaging. However, the minutiae of Jones' incessant, prigish, whining about his career must have gotten on the nerves of Franklin, Jefferson, Washington, etc. A self described naval strategist, he had many opinions which he freely shared with members of Congress or anyone who would listen. I had a hard time with this book because it droned on about relationships with count-this and duke-that. It took me months to finish listening.

Self Serving

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Well written book about an American hero who was far more complex than what we all learned in high school textbooks. The author does a nice job of pointing out the positives and flaws with Jones. While another review enjoyed the accents of the narrator - that was the one downside to my listen -- it got old after awhile.

Very Interesting Read

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Very good story, I did not realize how much of a selfish person Jones was. One of the most brilliant men in history but also the most inflated.

Very Good

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While the naration is well (including various accents to distinguish the important players in Jones' life), the major problem is Jones himself. While there is little that can be said, or done, to diminish the single most important (and incredible) action that made Jones famous (exceptionally retold in this biography), it's the years following that make the story so disappointing.
Alas, such is true, on some level or another, in all our lives, I'm afraid.
Still, it is a good, and important, "read", especially when balancing his life's thread by the actions of other important "players" during the "War of Independence."
Overall, I don't think you will be disappointed with this purchase.

Local "baern" does good.

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Enjoyed the story but found the recording irritating to listen to because the performer was sitting in a squeaking chair! There are also a few insurances where I could hear other voices talking in the background.

Poor recording quality

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Thought it was a great story. I thought it did a good job telling the whole vice the bits The Navy teaches.

very informative

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This is an extremely well written book about a fascinating historical figure. The reader is excellent and presents the material in a lively and interesting manner.

I Have Not Yet Begun to Praise

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I enjoy reading history, both non-fiction and historical novels. While I am not in a position to question the accuracy of the biography presented by Evan Thomas, I believe he has taken on the task well and shown many sides of the life and times of John Paul Jones. JPJ is one of those characters in our past whom we tend to remember only by the few sounds bites which become imfamous. The rest being mostly captured in our vague imaginations. This book helped immensely to put the father of the American navy into perspective for me. Even more so by the outstanding narrations which were intoned with fluent and believable accents and personalities. I enjoyed the read, a bit long towards the end, but recommended to anyone who enjoys historical biographies.

Swashbuckler or Saviour

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Very informative. Narrated well. Very well put together. I would buy this again, and would recommend it to a friend.

Great read, good narration.

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The biography of John Paul Jones is well researched and contains a large volume of information. There are exciting accounts of his actions at sea, but then the book falls into repeated accounts of his character flaws containing too many quotes that the narrator is forced to re-create Jones in a Scottish accent.

Very Good Account of JPK’s Life

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