Democracy in America (Excerpts)

By: Alexis de Tocqueville

Narrated by: George Guidall

Length: 4 hrs and 46 mins

Publisher's Summary

Alexis de Tocqueville's renowned analysis of American democracy still has relevance today. In 1831 de Tocqueville was sent to America by the French government to study the U.S. penal system, but his real aim was to observe a democratic republic firsthand to see if such an entity could function with dignity and humanity. His travels, which took him to the cities of the Northeast, to the frontier and the Great Lakes, down the Mississippi and through the South, showed him a great deal about the United States. In 1834, he wrote Democracy in America, in which he examines the advantages and pitfalls of democracy, the conditions and conflicts among the races, and the movements that grip the country.

Public Domain (P)1992 Recorded Books

Miserable Audio Quality

A great work of historical literature absolutely marred by the low quality of the recording. The audio is grainy and the speaker's voice is therefore transformed into a muddled rasp. This is unacceptable for an audio book and reveals Audible's stunning lack of failure in quality control.

This book, unfortunately, was my first choice as a new member at Audible; if it points to the standard for their other collections I will not subscribe for long.

12 of 12 people found this review helpful

Democracy in America

Please rerecord the book. You can hardly understand the voice of the narrator.

15 of 16 people found this review helpful

Important book, poor recording

This title requires a complete re-work of the audio. For the price of the audiobook it is a necessity that they do so. The book itself is of paramount importance and should be read by everyone before leaving high school. This is a foundation document that should be preserved with more respect.

10 of 11 people found this review helpful

Disappointed

I haven't read the book , but after all I have heard , I expected Greatness.Instead , I am forced to endure a biography of the author first , which , while perhaps may be interesting , though not to me , consumes much time , on this abridged edition.
The sound quality is poor , especially at 75 MPH , in a class 8 semi , no matter how good the sound system is.And mine is Premium.
The emphasis on certain passages of the book , to the exclusion of other , and , perhaps, more important passages , is unfortunate.
What those passages are , I haven't a clue , as this is , again , an abridged edition.
Would that there were an unabridged edition available , on audio , that I might judge for myself.
On the whole ,therefore , did I gain , from this listen , for the sum required ? Only if I had never been exposed , even remotely , to the conclusions the author expressed. I , unfortunately ,have , and therefore , while I might give this edition away , I cannot recommend it's purchase.
Perhaps others will be more fortunate.

15 of 17 people found this review helpful

Wonderful View from the Outside

"Democracy in America" is a wonderful snapshot of the American republic taken by a European tourist and scholar. The audio rendition is so-so, but the text carries the day.

3 of 4 people found this review helpful

Get the Full Work

Page by page, the entire work is far superior to this, or any other attempt to describe the unique nature of a great country and its people than this short work.

READ THIS

This work is as relevant today as when it was written. The "highlights" version seemed to do the trick too. AMAZING.