Access a growing selection of included Audible Originals, audiobooks, and podcasts.
You will get an email reminder before your trial ends.
Audible Plus auto-renews for $7.95/mo after 30 days. Upgrade or cancel anytime.
Bust Hell Wide Open  By  cover art

Bust Hell Wide Open

By: Samuel W. Mitcham Jr.
Narrated by: Dan John Miller
Try for $0.00

$7.95 a month after 30 days. Cancel anytime.

Buy for $17.90

Buy for $17.90

Pay using card ending in
By confirming your purchase, you agree to Audible's Conditions of Use and Amazon's Privacy Notice. Taxes where applicable.

Publisher's summary

An intimate biography of Nathan Bedford Forrest, arguably the most interesting figure to emerge from the Civil War - widely admired as a military genius.

At 14 he became the head of his impoverished family, responsible for feeding 11 on the rough American frontier. By 39 he had established himself as a successful plantation owner worth over $1 million. And at 40 years old, Nathan Bedford Forrest enlisted in a Tennessee cavalry regiment - and became a controversial Civil War legend.

The legacy of General Nathan Bedford Forrest is deeply divisive. Best known for being accused of war crimes at the Battle of Fort Pillow and for his role as first grand wizard of the Ku Klux Klan - an organization he later denounced - Forrest has often been studied as a military figure, but never before studied as a fascinating individual who wrestled with the complex issues of his violent times. Bust Hell Wide Open is a comprehensive portrait of Nathan Bedford Forrest as a man: his achievements, failings, reflections, and regrets.

©2016 Blackstone Audio, Inc. (P)2016 Samuel W. Mitcham Jr.

What listeners say about Bust Hell Wide Open

Average customer ratings
Overall
  • 4.5 out of 5 stars
  • 5 Stars
    735
  • 4 Stars
    122
  • 3 Stars
    46
  • 2 Stars
    17
  • 1 Stars
    12
Performance
  • 4.5 out of 5 stars
  • 5 Stars
    666
  • 4 Stars
    113
  • 3 Stars
    43
  • 2 Stars
    9
  • 1 Stars
    3
Story
  • 4.5 out of 5 stars
  • 5 Stars
    664
  • 4 Stars
    101
  • 3 Stars
    34
  • 2 Stars
    21
  • 1 Stars
    10

Reviews - Please select the tabs below to change the source of reviews.

Sort by:
Filter by:
  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    5 out of 5 stars

Great book

I never had much more than a minimal knowledge of Nathan Bedford Forrest but now after listening to this I have another person whom I can look up to with great admiration. We must not fall into the trap of judging historical characters by today’s standards, he did not live a spotless life early on, but there were still great attributes exhibited that can be admired and emulated.

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.

You voted on this review!

You reported this review!

1 person found this helpful

  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    5 out of 5 stars

Excellent History. Great Narration

A great book about a Great Man! Forrest isn’t a profit but certainly things he said ring true today. Hopefully this book will open the minds of more people.

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.

You voted on this review!

You reported this review!

  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    5 out of 5 stars

Fine story of a real though flawed man

Mitcham describes a brilliant, strong man. He disabuses false notions of KKK and Forrest, while explaining the actual facts. I appreciate the excellent description of the Civil War and post war period very much.

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.

You voted on this review!

You reported this review!

  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    5 out of 5 stars

Enlightenment for the reader

This book delivers a eye opening and a much needed clear view of a man that so many falsehoods have been written and spoken by those who had no idea of the history of the man and the civil war. I have always admired the man as a hero of the South but had no idea of the many particulars of his deeds and feats that he performed In The service of his country and convictions of his person . I will read this book Again after this has sank in my grey matter and I’m confident that I will enjoy it as much if not more the second reading as the first . I urge anyone even slightly curious about the civil war and the man to read this book . You will come away with a great respect and admiration for Nathan Bedford Forrest and clearer picture of the post war South .

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.

You voted on this review!

You reported this review!

  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    5 out of 5 stars

Shedding light on a historically maligned character

Samuel Mitcham has done a brilliant job of bringing Nathan Bedford Forrest back to life in all his color. Forest emerges as a brilliant battlefield commander, chivalrous and also maybe a little too full of himself. This book reveals through careful documentation that Forrest really repented of his Slave trading ways and his gambling. And helps clarify the rise and fall (and much later resurrection of) the Klan.

Brilliant narration with Forrest quotes in the perfect southern drawl that makes you think the narrator personally knew the man and the legend.

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.

You voted on this review!

You reported this review!

  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    5 out of 5 stars

Incredible book

A lot of great history resides in this book, he was one incredible man that loved his country.

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.

You voted on this review!

You reported this review!

  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    5 out of 5 stars

Changed my opinion. Great soldier.

A man of his time with many flaws who apparently was able to change with time. Great soldier and commander who saw the evil of the KKK.

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.

You voted on this review!

You reported this review!

  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    5 out of 5 stars

excellent

Absolutely fantastic narrative - highly recommended for understanding his facinating life and legacy that continues to be trashed in the media and academia.

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.

You voted on this review!

You reported this review!

3 people found this helpful

  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    5 out of 5 stars
  • GK
  • 07-03-18

Unexpected gem

Hey wonderful biography. It is well paced, informative, and tight. It will give you a new perspective on both the south, and it’s reconstruction. Simply a great listen.

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.

You voted on this review!

You reported this review!

2 people found this helpful

  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    4 out of 5 stars

Good Bio

You can tell their is alittle bias in the author but the book is still a good listen.

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.

You voted on this review!

You reported this review!