The Greater Journey

Americans in Paris

By: David McCullough

Narrated by: Edward Herrmann

Length: 16 hrs and 50 mins

Publisher's summary

The Greater Journey is the enthralling, inspiring - and until now, untold - story of the adventurous American artists, writers, doctors, politicians, architects, and others of high aspiration who set off for Paris in the years between 1830 and 1900, ambitious to excel in their work.

After risking the hazardous journey across the Atlantic, these Americans embarked on a greater journey in the City of Light. Most had never left home, never experienced a different culture. None had any guarantee of success. That they achieved so much for themselves and their country profoundly altered American history.

As David McCullough writes, “Not all pioneers went west.”

Nearly all of the Americans profiled here - including Elizabeth Blackwell, James Fenimore Cooper, Mark Twain, Oliver Wendell Holmes, Ralph Waldo Emerson, Nathaniel Hawthorne, and Harriet Beecher Stowe - whatever their troubles learning French, their spells of homesickness, and their suffering in the raw cold winters by the Seine, spent many of the happiest days and nights of their lives in Paris. McCullough tells this sweeping, fascinating story with power and intimacy, bringing us into the lives of remarkable men and women who, in Saint-Gaudens’s phrase, longed “to soar into the blue”. The Greater Journey is itself a masterpiece.

©2011 David McCullough (P)2011 Simon & Schuster

A Wandering Brief

I read the reviews of The Greater Journey and I was disappointed. However, I read McCullough so often and am so rarely disappointed, that I went ahead. I must join those who have written downbeat reviews.

What is the focus? Does the US owe so much of its medical and artistic heritage to France? Was Paris a fabulous place to live in the middle of the 19th Century (more so than in the 1920's)? These characters who made cameo appearances in an off Broadway play...figures of History who did not merit a biography of their own, worthy of such lengthy mention? Oh yes, there were facts and statistics that were surprising to uncover; there were descriptions of the Prussian siege of Paris that were new and well narrated, but every subject concentration jumped out of the shadows.

As always, Edward Herrmann reads so well that review is unnecessary. I simply continue to hope that it is he to whom I shall listen when I begin to listen to a long book.

I got the feeling that McCullough had done, as always, the most diligent research, had reviewed it and found no literary gel, then thrown it all into a pot and joined it 'somehow'. If you would like a snapshot of Paris of 150 years ago, you'll enjoy it. But this is not McCullough at his best. He read his own introduction and sounded halting, blurred...perhaps a little old. More's the pity. I'll look to see what he writes next. We are all allowed a miss here and there.

I Enjoyed Listening--Twice!

I bought this book because I like to listen to substantial books about history and I have enjoyed others by David McCullough. After I had finished it, my book club decided to read it. I thought I would listen to bits and pieces to refresh my memory, but I wound up going back to the beginning and listening to the whole book again, enjoying it as much the second time as I had the first.

Another amazing work of research from McCullough

Any additional comments?

This book provides the background of many of the writers and artists we thought we know. McCullough gives women writers and artists a significant amount of time in the book, when so much history does not. McCullough keeps us interested, even though there is no one story to tie the entire book together. He moves back and forth between the characters to keep you interested and to help you keep track of the decades he describes. We watch Paris and the United States take huge leaps in inagination, creativity, and technology.

A real pleasure

I love how the author brings history alive. The interplay between the growth of the United States parallel to the things that were going on in Europe was fascinating. I had no idea about the details of the war between France and Germany and it was so interesting how Mr. Washburn, the ambassador from the States, stayed in Paris and was so much help to so many people of various nationalities.

Edward Hermann is always a pleasure to listen to and makes you truly feel the breadth of the stories. Now I want to listen again and stop and research the artwork of the artists who studied and worked in Paris.

I felt it wrapped up a little quickly but still found it made sense.

My Favorite McCullough!

Who was your favorite character and why?

The women Impressionists

Any additional comments?

These questions don't relate well to this book. Need to re=do them.

A Historian for the Ages

No one teaches me more about what I feel I should know something about and do not than Mr.McCullough. From Adams to the rest of the Founding Fathers to Truman, I have been educated and entertained at every turn. This superb telling of a period and place in history that I simply was uninformed of is yet another example of a master at work. I was especially grateful to learn of the influence of Parisian medicine on the development of modern western medicine. Someone called him the American Herodotus. I simply would call him the consummate story teller and teacher. He loves his subject matter, and he loves his readers, and it always shows. I am grateful to Audible for allowing me access to so much that would be difficult for me to sit and read.

Marvelous Stories

We (my wife and I) loved everything about this book. We bought the hard back print edition and then I purchased the Audible version to listen to as I read the hard copy. The narration, by Edward Herrmann, is perfection. Herrmann always had a terrific voice and his pronunciation of the many French terms and names was more than helpful. I highly recommend The Greater Journey: Americans in Paris, especially to anyone interested in the arts, Paris, and France in general. McCullough's research, as always, was exceptionally thorough.

Best Book!!!

This was so fascinating. This book caused me to look up so many people on the computer to learn more about them, look at various art portraits and sculptures and even start planning a trip to Paris. What a wonderful book. Narration was perfect.

Another Great Read/Listen

David McCullough's reputation as a "great" in the history genre is well deserved. After reading David's account of the Wright brothers and 1776, I thought I'd give the Greater Journey a try as an audio book. I was a bit hesitant about the experience of listening to history as opposed to reading it and being able to flip back and revisit previous parts of the book (which I like to do to refresh my memory).

For me, the story started out a bit slow. The people and history seemed to only skim the outer surface. I was shortly presented with more in depth characterizations with multiple views of historic places/areas through the history of different people. The people and places featured were well done.

My concern about being able to flip back and forth was replaced by my ability to pause (or not) and look up people, places, and art on-line.

If you are a McCullough fan you already know he is a primo teller of history. For those wondering if the listen is worth it, I'd say yes. Be patient for the first chapter. You are rewarded with wonderful connections made later. Read this book or listen to it. This is a great choice!

Deep Dive Paris

If you love Paris, like most humans, and you've read all the other shorter reads and still want MORE then this is for you. And who doesn't want MORE out of Paris. You are human right?