Fire and Light
How the Enlightenment Transformed Our World
Failed to add items
Add to Cart failed.
Add to Wish List failed.
Remove from wishlist failed.
Adding to library failed
Follow podcast failed
Unfollow podcast failed
Prime members: New to Audible?Get 2 free audiobooks during trial.
Fire and Light
Buy for $17.19
No default payment method selected.
We are sorry. We are not allowed to sell this product with the selected payment method
-
Narrated by:
-
Norman Dietz
About this listen
In this engaging history, James MacGregor Burns brings to vivid life the two-hundred-year conflagration of the Enlightenment, during which audacious questions and astonishing ideas tore across Europe and the New World, transforming thought, bringing down governments, and inspiring visionary political experiments that would ultimately reach every corner of the globe.
Unlike most historians, Burns pays particular attention to America's intellectual revolution, beginning and ending his story on American soil.
He discovers the origins of our domestic Enlightenment in men like Benjamin Franklin, John Adams, and Thomas Jefferson and their early encounters with incendiary European ideas about liberty and equality, and he highlights the role of thinkers like James Madison and Alexander Hamilton. After all, it was the American founders, alone among Enlightenment thinkers, who actually carried through with their ideas.
Today the same questions Enlightenment thinkers grappled with have taken on new urgency around the world: in the blossoming Arab Spring, in the former Soviet Union, China, and in the United States. What should a nation be? What should a citizenry expect from its government? Who should lead and decide?
How can citizens effect change? What is happiness, and what can the state contribute to it? Burns's exploration of the ideals and arguments that formed the bedrock of our nation shines a new light on these ever-important questions.
©2013 James MacGregor Burns (P)2013 TantorListeners also enjoyed...
-
On Politics
- A History of Political Thought: From Herodotus to the Present
- By: Alan Ryan
- Narrated by: David Stifel
- Length: 46 hrs and 4 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall5 out of 5 stars 15
-
Performance5 out of 5 stars 14
-
Story5 out of 5 stars 14
Both a history and an examination of human thought and behavior spanning three thousand years, On Politics thrillingly traces the origins of political philosophy from the ancient Greeks to Machiavelli in Book I and from Hobbes to the present age in Book II. Whether examining Lord Acton's dictum that "absolute power corrupts absolutely" or explicating John Stuart Mill's contention that it is "better to be a human dissatisfied than a pig satisfied," Alan Ryan evokes the lives and minds of our greatest thinkers in a way that makes hearing about them a transcendent experience.
-
5 out of 5 stars
-
Simply no book quite like this
- By Jack Raineri on 12-21-22
By: Alan Ryan
-
Parfit
- A Philosopher and His Mission to Save Morality
- By: David Edmonds
- Narrated by: Zeb Soanes
- Length: 13 hrs and 14 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall5 out of 5 stars 44
-
Performance5 out of 5 stars 41
-
Story5 out of 5 stars 41
Derek Parfit (1942–2017) is the most famous philosopher most people have never heard of. Widely regarded as one of the greatest moral thinkers of the past hundred years, Parfit was anything but a public intellectual. Yet his ideas have shaped the way philosophers think about things that affect us all: equality, altruism, what we owe to future generations, and even what it means to be a person. In Parfit, David Edmonds presents the first biography of an intriguing, obsessive, and eccentric genius.
-
5 out of 5 stars
-
Loved it
- By Anna Karenina on 07-05-23
By: David Edmonds
-
The American Experiment
- By: James MacGregor Burns
- Narrated by: Mark Ashby
- Length: 88 hrs and 27 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 167
-
Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 148
-
Story4.5 out of 5 stars 149
James MacGregor Burns’s stunning trilogy of American history, spanning the birth of the Constitution to the final days of the Cold War. In these three volumes, Pulitzer Prize and National Book Award winner James MacGregor Burns chronicles with depth and narrative panache the most significant cultural, economic, and political events of American history.
-
3 out of 5 stars
-
American History ABCs
- By Michael on 06-16-15
-
The Story of Russia
- By: Orlando Figes
- Narrated by: Stefan Rudnicki
- Length: 12 hrs and 38 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 191
-
Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 168
-
Story4.5 out of 5 stars 168
The Story of Russia is about how the Russians defined themselves―and repeatedly reinvented such definitions along the way. Moving from Russia’s agrarian beginnings in the first millennium to subsequent periods of monarchy, totalitarianism, and perestroika, all the way up to Vladimir Putin and his use of myths of Russian history to bolster his regime, celebrated historian Orlando Figes examines the ideas that have guided the country’s actions.
-
4 out of 5 stars
-
Almost perfect…
- By Samantha Dispenzieri on 02-21-23
By: Orlando Figes
-
A Wicked Company
- The Forgotten Radicalism of the European Enlightenment
- By: Philipp Blom
- Narrated by: James Patrick Cronin
- Length: 14 hrs and 32 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 34
-
Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 33
-
Story4.5 out of 5 stars 33
The flourishing of radical philosophy in Baron Thierry Holbach’s Paris salon from the 1750s to the 1770s stands as a seminal event in Western history. Holbach’s house was an international epicenter of revolutionary ideas and intellectual daring, bringing together such original minds as Denis Diderot, Laurence Sterne, David Hume, Adam Smith, Ferdinando Galiani, Horace Walpole, Benjamin Franklin, Guillaume Raynal, and Jean-Jacques Rousseau. In A Wicked Company, acclaimed historian Philipp Blom retraces the fortunes of this exceptional group of friends.
-
5 out of 5 stars
-
Excellent Book on Radical Enlightenment
- By EJJ on 02-15-15
By: Philipp Blom
-
Our Oriental Heritage
- The Story of Civilization, Volume 1
- By: Will Durant
- Narrated by: Robin Field
- Length: 50 hrs and 17 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 1,312
-
Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 1,169
-
Story4.5 out of 5 stars 1,161
The first volume of Will Durant's Pulitzer Prize-winning series, Our Oriental Heritage: The Story of Civilization, Volume I chronicles the early history of Egypt, the Middle East, and Asia.
-
5 out of 5 stars
-
Wonderful
- By Michael on 11-30-13
By: Will Durant
-
On Politics
- A History of Political Thought: From Herodotus to the Present
- By: Alan Ryan
- Narrated by: David Stifel
- Length: 46 hrs and 4 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall5 out of 5 stars 15
-
Performance5 out of 5 stars 14
-
Story5 out of 5 stars 14
Both a history and an examination of human thought and behavior spanning three thousand years, On Politics thrillingly traces the origins of political philosophy from the ancient Greeks to Machiavelli in Book I and from Hobbes to the present age in Book II. Whether examining Lord Acton's dictum that "absolute power corrupts absolutely" or explicating John Stuart Mill's contention that it is "better to be a human dissatisfied than a pig satisfied," Alan Ryan evokes the lives and minds of our greatest thinkers in a way that makes hearing about them a transcendent experience.
-
5 out of 5 stars
-
Simply no book quite like this
- By Jack Raineri on 12-21-22
By: Alan Ryan
-
Parfit
- A Philosopher and His Mission to Save Morality
- By: David Edmonds
- Narrated by: Zeb Soanes
- Length: 13 hrs and 14 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall5 out of 5 stars 44
-
Performance5 out of 5 stars 41
-
Story5 out of 5 stars 41
Derek Parfit (1942–2017) is the most famous philosopher most people have never heard of. Widely regarded as one of the greatest moral thinkers of the past hundred years, Parfit was anything but a public intellectual. Yet his ideas have shaped the way philosophers think about things that affect us all: equality, altruism, what we owe to future generations, and even what it means to be a person. In Parfit, David Edmonds presents the first biography of an intriguing, obsessive, and eccentric genius.
-
5 out of 5 stars
-
Loved it
- By Anna Karenina on 07-05-23
By: David Edmonds
-
The American Experiment
- By: James MacGregor Burns
- Narrated by: Mark Ashby
- Length: 88 hrs and 27 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 167
-
Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 148
-
Story4.5 out of 5 stars 149
James MacGregor Burns’s stunning trilogy of American history, spanning the birth of the Constitution to the final days of the Cold War. In these three volumes, Pulitzer Prize and National Book Award winner James MacGregor Burns chronicles with depth and narrative panache the most significant cultural, economic, and political events of American history.
-
3 out of 5 stars
-
American History ABCs
- By Michael on 06-16-15
-
The Story of Russia
- By: Orlando Figes
- Narrated by: Stefan Rudnicki
- Length: 12 hrs and 38 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 191
-
Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 168
-
Story4.5 out of 5 stars 168
The Story of Russia is about how the Russians defined themselves―and repeatedly reinvented such definitions along the way. Moving from Russia’s agrarian beginnings in the first millennium to subsequent periods of monarchy, totalitarianism, and perestroika, all the way up to Vladimir Putin and his use of myths of Russian history to bolster his regime, celebrated historian Orlando Figes examines the ideas that have guided the country’s actions.
-
4 out of 5 stars
-
Almost perfect…
- By Samantha Dispenzieri on 02-21-23
By: Orlando Figes
-
A Wicked Company
- The Forgotten Radicalism of the European Enlightenment
- By: Philipp Blom
- Narrated by: James Patrick Cronin
- Length: 14 hrs and 32 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 34
-
Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 33
-
Story4.5 out of 5 stars 33
The flourishing of radical philosophy in Baron Thierry Holbach’s Paris salon from the 1750s to the 1770s stands as a seminal event in Western history. Holbach’s house was an international epicenter of revolutionary ideas and intellectual daring, bringing together such original minds as Denis Diderot, Laurence Sterne, David Hume, Adam Smith, Ferdinando Galiani, Horace Walpole, Benjamin Franklin, Guillaume Raynal, and Jean-Jacques Rousseau. In A Wicked Company, acclaimed historian Philipp Blom retraces the fortunes of this exceptional group of friends.
-
5 out of 5 stars
-
Excellent Book on Radical Enlightenment
- By EJJ on 02-15-15
By: Philipp Blom
-
Our Oriental Heritage
- The Story of Civilization, Volume 1
- By: Will Durant
- Narrated by: Robin Field
- Length: 50 hrs and 17 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 1,312
-
Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 1,169
-
Story4.5 out of 5 stars 1,161
The first volume of Will Durant's Pulitzer Prize-winning series, Our Oriental Heritage: The Story of Civilization, Volume I chronicles the early history of Egypt, the Middle East, and Asia.
-
5 out of 5 stars
-
Wonderful
- By Michael on 11-30-13
By: Will Durant
-
The Rise and Fall of the Third Reich
- A History of Nazi Germany
- By: William L. Shirer
- Narrated by: Grover Gardner
- Length: 57 hrs and 11 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall5 out of 5 stars 17,871
-
Performance5 out of 5 stars 15,422
-
Story5 out of 5 stars 15,354
Since its publication in 1960, William L. Shirer’s monumental study of Hitler’s German empire has been widely acclaimed as the definitive record of the 20th century’s blackest hours. The Rise and Fall of the Third Reich offers an unparalleled and thrillingly told examination of how Adolf Hitler nearly succeeded in conquering the world. With millions of copies in print around the globe, it has attained the status of a vital and enduring classic.
-
5 out of 5 stars
-
Held my interest for 57 hours and 13 minutes
- By Jonnie on 11-08-10
-
Marx's General
- The Revolutionary Life of Friedrich Engels
- By: Tristram Hunt
- Narrated by: Norman Dietz
- Length: 17 hrs and 26 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4 out of 5 stars 38
-
Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 24
-
Story4.5 out of 5 stars 23
Friedrich Engels is one of the most intriguing and contradictory figures of the 19th century. Born to a prosperous Prussian mercantile family, he spent his life working in the Manchester cotton industry, riding to the Cheshire hounds, and enjoying the comfortable upper-middle-class existence of a Victorian gentleman.
-
3 out of 5 stars
-
Not many choices here anyways.
- By Prof. Neil Larsen on 02-16-13
By: Tristram Hunt
-
Tyranny of the Minority
- Why American Democracy Reached the Breaking Point
- By: Steven Levitsky, Daniel Ziblatt
- Narrated by: Fred Sanders
- Length: 8 hrs and 49 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 288
-
Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 260
-
Story4.5 out of 5 stars 260
America is undergoing a massive experiment: It is moving, in fits and starts, toward a multiracial democracy, something few societies have ever done. But the prospect of change has sparked an authoritarian backlash that threatens the very foundations of our political system. Why is democracy under assault here, and not in other wealthy, diversifying nations? And what can we do to save it?
-
5 out of 5 stars
-
Tyranny of the Minority
- By orders on 10-07-23
By: Steven Levitsky, and others
-
The American Spirit
- Who We Are and What We Stand For
- By: David McCullough
- Narrated by: David McCullough
- Length: 4 hrs and 13 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 1,292
-
Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 1,149
-
Story4.5 out of 5 stars 1,142
Over the course of his distinguished career, David McCullough has spoken before Congress, colleges and universities, historical societies, and other esteemed institutions. Now, at a time of self-reflection in America following a bitter election campaign that has left the country divided, McCullough has collected some of his most important speeches in a brief volume designed to identify important principles and characteristics that are particularly American.
-
5 out of 5 stars
-
Our New "OLD MAN ELOQUENT" Rides Again
- By Ray on 04-21-17
By: David McCullough
-
The Age of Insight
- The Quest to Understand the Unconscious in Art, Mind, and Brain, from Vienna 1900 to the Present
- By: Eric R. Kandel
- Narrated by: James Anderson Foster
- Length: 16 hrs and 8 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 110
-
Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 88
-
Story4.5 out of 5 stars 90
A brilliant book by Nobel Prize winner Eric R. Kandel, The Age of Insight takes us to Vienna 1900, where leaders in science, medicine, and art began a revolution that changed forever how we think about the human mind - our conscious and unconscious thoughts and emotions - and how mind and brain relate to art.
-
5 out of 5 stars
-
Worth the listen
- By Amazon Customer on 01-28-19
By: Eric R. Kandel
-
Reality+
- Virtual Worlds and the Problems of Philosophy
- By: David J. Chalmers
- Narrated by: Grant Cartwright
- Length: 17 hrs and 12 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4 out of 5 stars 191
-
Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 151
-
Story4 out of 5 stars 150
Virtual reality is genuine reality; that’s the central thesis of Reality+. In a highly original work of “technophilosophy,” David J. Chalmers gives a compelling analysis of our technological future. He argues that virtual worlds are not second-class worlds, and that we can live a meaningful life in virtual reality. We may even be in a virtual world already.
-
3 out of 5 stars
-
A book that could have been an email
- By Peter C. on 04-15-22
-
Hitler's True Believers
- How Ordinary People Became Nazis
- By: Robert Gellately
- Narrated by: Paul Heitsch
- Length: 15 hrs and 52 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 49
-
Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 38
-
Story4.5 out of 5 stars 38
Understanding Adolf Hitler's ideology provides insights into the mental world of an extremist politics that, over the course of the Third Reich, developed explosive energies culminating in the Second World War and the Holocaust. Too often the theories underlying National Socialism or Nazism are dismissed as an irrational hodgepodge of ideas. Yet that ideology drove Hitler's quest for power in 1933, colored everything in the Third Reich, and transformed him, however briefly, into the most powerful leader in the world.
-
5 out of 5 stars
-
Fascinating listen
- By Amy Neff on 12-15-22
By: Robert Gellately
-
Anti-Intellectualism in American Life
- By: Richard Hofstadter
- Narrated by: Adam Verner
- Length: 16 hrs and 33 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 185
-
Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 158
-
Story4.5 out of 5 stars 157
This book throws light on many features of the American character. Its concern is not merely to portray the scorners of intellect in American life, but to say something about what the intellectual is, and can be, as a force in a democratic society.
-
4 out of 5 stars
-
Still Current, Without Opening Recent Wounds
- By wbiro on 11-09-17
-
The Glorious Cause: The American Revolution: 1763-1789
- By: Robert Middlekauff
- Narrated by: Robert Fass
- Length: 26 hrs and 56 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 1,296
-
Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 1,098
-
Story4.5 out of 5 stars 1,093
The first book to appear in the illustrious Oxford History of the United States, this critically-acclaimed volume - a finalist for the Pulitzer Prize - offers an unsurpassed history of the Revolutionary War and the birth of the American republic.
-
4 out of 5 stars
-
Strong History Rich With Behind The Scenes Details
- By John on 10-06-11
-
American Nations
- A History of the Eleven Rival Regional Cultures of North America
- By: Colin Woodard
- Narrated by: Walter Dixon
- Length: 12 hrs and 51 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 3,497
-
Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 3,031
-
Story4.5 out of 5 stars 3,028
North America was settled by people with distinct religious, political, and ethnographic characteristics, creating regional cultures that have been at odds with one another ever since. Subsequent immigrants didn't confront or assimilate into an "American" or "Canadian" culture, but rather into one of the 11 distinct regional ones that spread over the continent each staking out mutually exclusive territory. In American Nations, Colin Woodard leads us on a journey through the history of our fractured continent....
-
5 out of 5 stars
-
One of a Kind Masterpiece
- By Theo Horesh on 02-28-13
By: Colin Woodard
-
The Coming of the Third Reich
- By: Richard J. Evans
- Narrated by: Sean Pratt
- Length: 21 hrs and 11 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 2,180
-
Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 1,717
-
Story4.5 out of 5 stars 1,717
There is no story in 20th-century history more important to understand than Hitler’s rise to power and the collapse of civilization in Nazi Germany. With The Coming of the Third Reich, Richard Evans, one of the world’s most distinguished historians, has written the definitive account for our time.
-
5 out of 5 stars
-
Compelling and depressing
- By Tad Davis on 06-30-10
By: Richard J. Evans
-
The English and Their History
- By: Robert Tombs
- Narrated by: James Langton
- Length: 43 hrs and 9 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 688
-
Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 603
-
Story4.5 out of 5 stars 595
Robert Tombs' momentous The English and Their History is both a startlingly fresh and a uniquely inclusive account of the people who have a claim to be the oldest nation in the world. The English first came into existence as an idea, before they had a common ruler and before the country they lived in even had a name. They have lasted as a recognizable entity ever since, and their defining national institutions can be traced back to the earliest years of their history.
-
3 out of 5 stars
-
Should be called, The English and their politics
- By Mary Elizabeth Reynolds on 08-24-16
By: Robert Tombs
Critic reviews
Related to this topic
-
The Glorious Cause: The American Revolution: 1763-1789
- By: Robert Middlekauff
- Narrated by: Robert Fass
- Length: 26 hrs and 56 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 1,296
-
Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 1,098
-
Story4.5 out of 5 stars 1,093
The first book to appear in the illustrious Oxford History of the United States, this critically-acclaimed volume - a finalist for the Pulitzer Prize - offers an unsurpassed history of the Revolutionary War and the birth of the American republic.
-
4 out of 5 stars
-
Strong History Rich With Behind The Scenes Details
- By John on 10-06-11
-
The American Revolution
- A History [Modern Library Chronicles]
- By: Gordon S. Wood
- Narrated by: Jack Garrett
- Length: 6 hrs and 33 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4 out of 5 stars 137
-
Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 80
-
Story4.5 out of 5 stars 80
The American Revolution signalled a great change in the course of world history and progress. From this colonial revolt sprouted ideals of liberty and democracy, and all the aspirations and ambitions of a new people. In this work, Pulitzer Prize-winning historian Gordon S. Wood discusses the character and consequences of the revolution, grounding the events and ideas that shaped the American consciousness.
-
5 out of 5 stars
-
The foremost scholar on the subject
- By Robert on 08-20-05
By: Gordon S. Wood
-
The Lost History of Liberalism
- From Ancient Rome to the Twenty-First Century
- By: Helena Rosenblatt
- Narrated by: Xe Sands
- Length: 8 hrs and 20 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 67
-
Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 55
-
Story4.5 out of 5 stars 54
The Lost History of Liberalism challenges our most basic assumptions about a political creed that has become a rallying cry - and a term of derision - in today's increasingly divided public square. Taking listeners from ancient Rome to today, Helena Rosenblatt traces the evolution of the words "liberal" and "liberalism", revealing the heated debates that have taken place over their meaning. In this timely and provocative book, Rosenblatt debunks the popular myth of liberalism as a uniquely Anglo-American tradition centered on individual rights.
-
5 out of 5 stars
-
Educative and informative
- By Amazon Customer on 06-05-19
-
Inglorious Empire
- What the British Did to India
- By: Shashi Tharoor
- Narrated by: Shashi Tharoor
- Length: 10 hrs and 33 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 515
-
Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 452
-
Story4.5 out of 5 stars 450
In the 18th century, India's share of the world economy was as large as Europe's. By 1947, after two centuries of British rule, it had decreased six-fold. Beyond conquest and deception, the Empire blew rebels from cannons, massacred unarmed protesters, entrenched institutionalized racism, and caused millions to die from starvation. British imperialism justified itself as enlightened despotism for the benefit of the governed, but Shashi Tharoor takes on and demolishes this position, demonstrating how every supposed imperial "gift" was designed in Britain's interests alone.
-
4 out of 5 stars
-
An entertaining and provocative history
- By James Moseley on 01-07-20
By: Shashi Tharoor
-
The American Political Tradition
- And the Men Who Made it
- By: Richard Hofstadter, Christopher Lasch - foreword
- Narrated by: Kaleo Griffith
- Length: 17 hrs and 23 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall5 out of 5 stars 37
-
Performance5 out of 5 stars 30
-
Story5 out of 5 stars 28
The American Political Tradition is one of the most influential and widely read historical volumes of our time. First published in 1948, its elegance, passion, and iconoclastic erudition laid the groundwork for a totally new understanding of the American past. By writing a "kind of intellectual history of the assumptions behind American politics", Richard Hofstadter changed the way Americans understand the relationship between power and ideas in their national experience. Hofstadter was able to articulate, in a single work, a historical vision that inspired and shaped an entire generation.
By: Richard Hofstadter, and others
-
From the Ruins of Empire
- The Revolt Against the West and the Remaking of Asia
- By: Pankaj Mishra
- Narrated by: Derek Perkins
- Length: 13 hrs and 15 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 69
-
Performance5 out of 5 stars 57
-
Story4.5 out of 5 stars 57
A little more than a century ago, as the Japanese navy annihilated the giant Russian one at the Battle of Tsushima, original thinkers across Asia, working independently, sought to frame a distinctly Asian intellectual tradition that would inform and inspire the continent's anticipated rise to dominance.
-
5 out of 5 stars
-
Breathtaking Scale, Cohesion and Vision of Asian History
- By Oscar C. Huerta on 03-18-19
By: Pankaj Mishra
-
The Glorious Cause: The American Revolution: 1763-1789
- By: Robert Middlekauff
- Narrated by: Robert Fass
- Length: 26 hrs and 56 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 1,296
-
Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 1,098
-
Story4.5 out of 5 stars 1,093
The first book to appear in the illustrious Oxford History of the United States, this critically-acclaimed volume - a finalist for the Pulitzer Prize - offers an unsurpassed history of the Revolutionary War and the birth of the American republic.
-
4 out of 5 stars
-
Strong History Rich With Behind The Scenes Details
- By John on 10-06-11
-
The American Revolution
- A History [Modern Library Chronicles]
- By: Gordon S. Wood
- Narrated by: Jack Garrett
- Length: 6 hrs and 33 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4 out of 5 stars 137
-
Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 80
-
Story4.5 out of 5 stars 80
The American Revolution signalled a great change in the course of world history and progress. From this colonial revolt sprouted ideals of liberty and democracy, and all the aspirations and ambitions of a new people. In this work, Pulitzer Prize-winning historian Gordon S. Wood discusses the character and consequences of the revolution, grounding the events and ideas that shaped the American consciousness.
-
5 out of 5 stars
-
The foremost scholar on the subject
- By Robert on 08-20-05
By: Gordon S. Wood
-
The Lost History of Liberalism
- From Ancient Rome to the Twenty-First Century
- By: Helena Rosenblatt
- Narrated by: Xe Sands
- Length: 8 hrs and 20 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 67
-
Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 55
-
Story4.5 out of 5 stars 54
The Lost History of Liberalism challenges our most basic assumptions about a political creed that has become a rallying cry - and a term of derision - in today's increasingly divided public square. Taking listeners from ancient Rome to today, Helena Rosenblatt traces the evolution of the words "liberal" and "liberalism", revealing the heated debates that have taken place over their meaning. In this timely and provocative book, Rosenblatt debunks the popular myth of liberalism as a uniquely Anglo-American tradition centered on individual rights.
-
5 out of 5 stars
-
Educative and informative
- By Amazon Customer on 06-05-19
-
Inglorious Empire
- What the British Did to India
- By: Shashi Tharoor
- Narrated by: Shashi Tharoor
- Length: 10 hrs and 33 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 515
-
Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 452
-
Story4.5 out of 5 stars 450
In the 18th century, India's share of the world economy was as large as Europe's. By 1947, after two centuries of British rule, it had decreased six-fold. Beyond conquest and deception, the Empire blew rebels from cannons, massacred unarmed protesters, entrenched institutionalized racism, and caused millions to die from starvation. British imperialism justified itself as enlightened despotism for the benefit of the governed, but Shashi Tharoor takes on and demolishes this position, demonstrating how every supposed imperial "gift" was designed in Britain's interests alone.
-
4 out of 5 stars
-
An entertaining and provocative history
- By James Moseley on 01-07-20
By: Shashi Tharoor
-
The American Political Tradition
- And the Men Who Made it
- By: Richard Hofstadter, Christopher Lasch - foreword
- Narrated by: Kaleo Griffith
- Length: 17 hrs and 23 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall5 out of 5 stars 37
-
Performance5 out of 5 stars 30
-
Story5 out of 5 stars 28
The American Political Tradition is one of the most influential and widely read historical volumes of our time. First published in 1948, its elegance, passion, and iconoclastic erudition laid the groundwork for a totally new understanding of the American past. By writing a "kind of intellectual history of the assumptions behind American politics", Richard Hofstadter changed the way Americans understand the relationship between power and ideas in their national experience. Hofstadter was able to articulate, in a single work, a historical vision that inspired and shaped an entire generation.
By: Richard Hofstadter, and others
-
From the Ruins of Empire
- The Revolt Against the West and the Remaking of Asia
- By: Pankaj Mishra
- Narrated by: Derek Perkins
- Length: 13 hrs and 15 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 69
-
Performance5 out of 5 stars 57
-
Story4.5 out of 5 stars 57
A little more than a century ago, as the Japanese navy annihilated the giant Russian one at the Battle of Tsushima, original thinkers across Asia, working independently, sought to frame a distinctly Asian intellectual tradition that would inform and inspire the continent's anticipated rise to dominance.
-
5 out of 5 stars
-
Breathtaking Scale, Cohesion and Vision of Asian History
- By Oscar C. Huerta on 03-18-19
By: Pankaj Mishra
-
The Unfinished Symphony
- The Clash of the Two Americas, Volume 1
- By: Matthew Ehret, Cynthia Chung
- Narrated by: Hugh Trudeau
- Length: 5 hrs and 55 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 28
-
Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 24
-
Story5 out of 5 stars 25
This volume will showcase the international grand design led by Benjamin Franklin that manifested in the establishment of the American republic and trace the next 130 years of world history as the USA was targeted for destruction by oligarchical forces from London and also from within leading up to the assassination of William McKinley in 1901.
-
5 out of 5 stars
-
Timeless overview of world history
- By Greg W. on 07-06-24
By: Matthew Ehret, and others
![Communism [Modern Library Chronicles] Audiobook By Richard Pipes cover art](https://m.media-amazon.com/images/I/31eeTPckVLL._SL320_.jpg)
-
Communism [Modern Library Chronicles]
- By: Richard Pipes
- Narrated by: George Wilson
- Length: 5 hrs and 46 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 119
-
Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 69
-
Story4.5 out of 5 stars 68
From the acclaimed Modern Library Chronicles comes an exploration of a promising theory that when put to practice wreaked havoc on the world. An expert on communism, Richard Pipes follows the history of the Soviet Union from the 1917 revolution to the Cold War, and finally, to its deterioration and collapse.
-
2 out of 5 stars
-
Interesting but lacks objectivity
- By Mazen on 07-06-06
By: Richard Pipes
-
The Islamic Enlightenment
- The Struggle Between Faith and Reason: 1798 to Modern Times
- By: Christopher de Bellaigue
- Narrated by: Charles Armstrong
- Length: 15 hrs and 11 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 47
-
Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 43
-
Story4.5 out of 5 stars 43
This absorbing account of the political and social reformations that transformed the lands of Islam during the 19th and early 20th centuries offers a game-changing assessment of the Middle East. Beginning his account in 1798, de Bellaigue demonstrates how the Middle East has long welcomed modern ideals and practices, including the adoption of modern medicine, the emergence of women from seclusion, and the development of democracy.
-
4 out of 5 stars
-
fascinating story not told.elsewhere in one place
- By Joseph Sullivan on 11-30-21
-
The Idea of America
- Reflections on the Birth of the United States
- By: Gordon S Wood
- Narrated by: Robert Fass
- Length: 12 hrs and 58 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 50
-
Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 39
-
Story4.5 out of 5 stars 36
The preeminent historian of the American Revolution explains why it remains the most significant event in our history
-
5 out of 5 stars
-
Sophisticated analyses
- By Roger on 01-25-12
By: Gordon S Wood
-
The English and Their History
- By: Robert Tombs
- Narrated by: James Langton
- Length: 43 hrs and 9 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 688
-
Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 603
-
Story4.5 out of 5 stars 595
Robert Tombs' momentous The English and Their History is both a startlingly fresh and a uniquely inclusive account of the people who have a claim to be the oldest nation in the world. The English first came into existence as an idea, before they had a common ruler and before the country they lived in even had a name. They have lasted as a recognizable entity ever since, and their defining national institutions can be traced back to the earliest years of their history.
-
3 out of 5 stars
-
Should be called, The English and their politics
- By Mary Elizabeth Reynolds on 08-24-16
By: Robert Tombs
-
The American Experiment
- By: James MacGregor Burns
- Narrated by: Mark Ashby
- Length: 88 hrs and 27 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 167
-
Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 148
-
Story4.5 out of 5 stars 149
James MacGregor Burns’s stunning trilogy of American history, spanning the birth of the Constitution to the final days of the Cold War. In these three volumes, Pulitzer Prize and National Book Award winner James MacGregor Burns chronicles with depth and narrative panache the most significant cultural, economic, and political events of American history.
-
3 out of 5 stars
-
American History ABCs
- By Michael on 06-16-15
-
Churchill's Trial
- Winston Churchill and the Salvation of Free Government
- By: Dr. Larry Arnn
- Narrated by: Wayne Campbell
- Length: 10 hrs and 20 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 147
-
Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 130
-
Story4.5 out of 5 stars 130
A penetrating look at the necessity of constitutional limits upon government and exceptional men to lead those governments, uniquely taken by overlaying the life and writings of Winston Churchill with the American experiment.
-
4 out of 5 stars
-
A Masterpiece of Political Philosophy
- By Jean on 01-25-16
By: Dr. Larry Arnn
-
A History of the American People
- By: Paul Johnson
- Narrated by: Nadia May
- Length: 48 hrs and 15 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 698
-
Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 491
-
Story4.5 out of 5 stars 491
Johnson's monumental history of the United States, from the first settlers to the Clinton administration, covers every aspect of American culture: politics, business, art, literature, science, society and customs, complex traditions, and religious beliefs. The story is told in terms of the men and women who shaped and led the nation and the ordinary people who collectively created its unique character.
-
5 out of 5 stars
-
A British conservative's view of American history.
- By Mike From Mesa on 06-17-09
By: Paul Johnson
-
Victorious Century
- The United Kingdom, 1800-1906
- By: David Cannadine
- Narrated by: Kris Dyer
- Length: 24 hrs and 57 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 60
-
Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 51
-
Story4.5 out of 5 stars 52
To live in 19th-century Britain was to experience an astonishing series of changes, of a kind for which there was simply no precedent. There were revolutions in transport, communication and work; cities grew vast; and scientific ideas made the intellectual landscape unrecognisable. This was an exhilarating time but also a horrifying one. In his new book, David Cannadine has created a bold, fascinating new interpretation of the British 19th century in all its energy and dynamism, darkness and vice.
-
3 out of 5 stars
-
Blandly toeing the line between macro and micro
- By Max Shafer-landau on 10-17-17
By: David Cannadine
-
The Habsburg Empire
- A New History
- By: Pieter M. Judson
- Narrated by: Michael Page
- Length: 18 hrs and 9 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4 out of 5 stars 372
-
Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 320
-
Story4 out of 5 stars 319
Rejecting fragmented histories of nations in the making, this bold revision surveys the shared institutions that bridged difference and distance to bring stability and meaning to the far-flung empire. By supporting new schools, law courts, and railroads along with scientific and artistic advances, the Habsburg monarchs sought to anchor their authority in the cultures and economies of Central Europe. A rising standard of living throughout the empire deepened the legitimacy of Habsburg rule.
-
5 out of 5 stars
-
Ideal for students of empires, nationalism, minorities and ethnic groups
- By Uther on 02-11-17
By: Pieter M. Judson
-
How the Scots Invented the Modern World
- By: Arthur Herman
- Narrated by: Robert Ian Mackenzie
- Length: 18 hrs and 20 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 491
-
Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 436
-
Story4.5 out of 5 stars 437
Who formed the first literate society? Who invented our modern ideas of democracy and free market capitalism? The Scots. As historian and author Arthur Herman reveals, in the 18th and 19th centuries Scotland made crucial contributions to science, philosophy, literature, education, medicine, commerce, and politics - contributions that have formed and nurtured the modern West ever since. This book is not just about Scotland: it is an exciting account of the origins of the modern world.
-
5 out of 5 stars
-
Eagerly Awaited Audiobook
- By Lulu on 09-01-16
By: Arthur Herman
-
Washington's Farewell
- The Founding Father's Warning to Future Generations
- By: John Avlon
- Narrated by: John Avlon
- Length: 10 hrs and 4 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 281
-
Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 248
-
Story4.5 out of 5 stars 250
George Washington's Farewell Address was a prophetic letter from a "parting friend" to his fellow citizens about the forces he feared could destroy our democracy: hyper-partisanship, excessive debt, and foreign wars. Once celebrated as civic scripture, more widely reprinted than the Declaration of Independence, the Farewell Address is now almost forgotten. Its message remains starkly relevant. In Washington's Farewell, John Avlon offers a stunning portrait of our first president and his battle to save America from self-destruction.
-
5 out of 5 stars
-
Very well written and performed
- By Michael Reading on 03-02-17
By: John Avlon
People who viewed this also viewed...
-
The American Experiment
- By: James MacGregor Burns
- Narrated by: Mark Ashby
- Length: 88 hrs and 27 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 167
-
Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 148
-
Story4.5 out of 5 stars 149
James MacGregor Burns’s stunning trilogy of American history, spanning the birth of the Constitution to the final days of the Cold War. In these three volumes, Pulitzer Prize and National Book Award winner James MacGregor Burns chronicles with depth and narrative panache the most significant cultural, economic, and political events of American history.
-
3 out of 5 stars
-
American History ABCs
- By Michael on 06-16-15
-
On Politics
- A History of Political Thought: From Herodotus to the Present
- By: Alan Ryan
- Narrated by: David Stifel
- Length: 46 hrs and 4 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall5 out of 5 stars 15
-
Performance5 out of 5 stars 14
-
Story5 out of 5 stars 14
Both a history and an examination of human thought and behavior spanning three thousand years, On Politics thrillingly traces the origins of political philosophy from the ancient Greeks to Machiavelli in Book I and from Hobbes to the present age in Book II. Whether examining Lord Acton's dictum that "absolute power corrupts absolutely" or explicating John Stuart Mill's contention that it is "better to be a human dissatisfied than a pig satisfied," Alan Ryan evokes the lives and minds of our greatest thinkers in a way that makes hearing about them a transcendent experience.
-
5 out of 5 stars
-
Simply no book quite like this
- By Jack Raineri on 12-21-22
By: Alan Ryan
-
The Age of Revolution
- 1789-1848
- By: Eric Hobsbawm
- Narrated by: Hugh Kermode
- Length: 14 hrs and 29 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 172
-
Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 141
-
Story4.5 out of 5 stars 140
This magisterial volume follows the death of ancient traditions, the triumph of new classes, and the emergence of new technologies, sciences, and ideologies, with vast intellectual daring and aphoristic elegance. Part of Eric Hobsbawm's epic four-volume history of the modern world, along with The Age of Capitalism, The Age of Empire, and The Age of Extremes.
-
5 out of 5 stars
-
Brilliant Materialist Interpretation
- By Earth Lover on 05-16-20
By: Eric Hobsbawm
-
Brainscapes
- The Warped, Wondrous Maps Written in Your Brain - and How They Guide You
- By: Rebecca Schwarzlose
- Narrated by: Rebecca Schwarzlose
- Length: 9 hrs and 5 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 26
-
Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 19
-
Story4.5 out of 5 stars 19
A path-breaking journey into the brain, showing how perception, thought, and action are products of "maps" etched into your gray matter - and how technology can use them to read your mind.
-
5 out of 5 stars
-
Rare situation of author being excellent narrator
- By Paul on 05-17-23
-
Armor and Blood
- The Battle of Kursk: The Turning Point of World War II
- By: Dennis E. Showalter
- Narrated by: Robertson Dean
- Length: 10 hrs
- Unabridged
-
Overall4 out of 5 stars 502
-
Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 450
-
Story4.5 out of 5 stars 449
While the Battle of Kursk has long captivated World War II aficionados, it has been unjustly overlooked by historians. Drawing on the masses of new information made available by the opening of the Russian military archives, Dennis E. Showalter at last corrects that error. This battle was the critical turning point on World War II's Eastern Front. In the aftermath of the Red Army's brutal repulse of the Germans at Stalingrad, the stakes could not have been higher.
-
5 out of 5 stars
-
Big Ups to Prof. Showalter and Audible
- By Placeholder on 08-28-13
-
The Ideological Origins of the American Revolution
- By: Bernard Bailyn
- Narrated by: Tom Perkins
- Length: 14 hrs and 6 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 93
-
Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 76
-
Story4.5 out of 5 stars 73
To the original text of what has become a classic of American historical literature, Bernard Bailyn adds a substantial essay, "Fulfillment", as a postscript. Here he discusses the intense nationwide debate on the ratification of the Constitution, stressing the continuities between that struggle over the foundations of the national government and the original principles of the Revolution.
-
5 out of 5 stars
-
Bernard Bailyn is a genius!
- By John M. Crean on 04-21-19
By: Bernard Bailyn
-
The American Experiment
- By: James MacGregor Burns
- Narrated by: Mark Ashby
- Length: 88 hrs and 27 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 167
-
Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 148
-
Story4.5 out of 5 stars 149
James MacGregor Burns’s stunning trilogy of American history, spanning the birth of the Constitution to the final days of the Cold War. In these three volumes, Pulitzer Prize and National Book Award winner James MacGregor Burns chronicles with depth and narrative panache the most significant cultural, economic, and political events of American history.
-
3 out of 5 stars
-
American History ABCs
- By Michael on 06-16-15
-
On Politics
- A History of Political Thought: From Herodotus to the Present
- By: Alan Ryan
- Narrated by: David Stifel
- Length: 46 hrs and 4 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall5 out of 5 stars 15
-
Performance5 out of 5 stars 14
-
Story5 out of 5 stars 14
Both a history and an examination of human thought and behavior spanning three thousand years, On Politics thrillingly traces the origins of political philosophy from the ancient Greeks to Machiavelli in Book I and from Hobbes to the present age in Book II. Whether examining Lord Acton's dictum that "absolute power corrupts absolutely" or explicating John Stuart Mill's contention that it is "better to be a human dissatisfied than a pig satisfied," Alan Ryan evokes the lives and minds of our greatest thinkers in a way that makes hearing about them a transcendent experience.
-
5 out of 5 stars
-
Simply no book quite like this
- By Jack Raineri on 12-21-22
By: Alan Ryan
-
The Age of Revolution
- 1789-1848
- By: Eric Hobsbawm
- Narrated by: Hugh Kermode
- Length: 14 hrs and 29 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 172
-
Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 141
-
Story4.5 out of 5 stars 140
This magisterial volume follows the death of ancient traditions, the triumph of new classes, and the emergence of new technologies, sciences, and ideologies, with vast intellectual daring and aphoristic elegance. Part of Eric Hobsbawm's epic four-volume history of the modern world, along with The Age of Capitalism, The Age of Empire, and The Age of Extremes.
-
5 out of 5 stars
-
Brilliant Materialist Interpretation
- By Earth Lover on 05-16-20
By: Eric Hobsbawm
-
Brainscapes
- The Warped, Wondrous Maps Written in Your Brain - and How They Guide You
- By: Rebecca Schwarzlose
- Narrated by: Rebecca Schwarzlose
- Length: 9 hrs and 5 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 26
-
Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 19
-
Story4.5 out of 5 stars 19
A path-breaking journey into the brain, showing how perception, thought, and action are products of "maps" etched into your gray matter - and how technology can use them to read your mind.
-
5 out of 5 stars
-
Rare situation of author being excellent narrator
- By Paul on 05-17-23
-
Armor and Blood
- The Battle of Kursk: The Turning Point of World War II
- By: Dennis E. Showalter
- Narrated by: Robertson Dean
- Length: 10 hrs
- Unabridged
-
Overall4 out of 5 stars 502
-
Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 450
-
Story4.5 out of 5 stars 449
While the Battle of Kursk has long captivated World War II aficionados, it has been unjustly overlooked by historians. Drawing on the masses of new information made available by the opening of the Russian military archives, Dennis E. Showalter at last corrects that error. This battle was the critical turning point on World War II's Eastern Front. In the aftermath of the Red Army's brutal repulse of the Germans at Stalingrad, the stakes could not have been higher.
-
5 out of 5 stars
-
Big Ups to Prof. Showalter and Audible
- By Placeholder on 08-28-13
-
The Ideological Origins of the American Revolution
- By: Bernard Bailyn
- Narrated by: Tom Perkins
- Length: 14 hrs and 6 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 93
-
Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 76
-
Story4.5 out of 5 stars 73
To the original text of what has become a classic of American historical literature, Bernard Bailyn adds a substantial essay, "Fulfillment", as a postscript. Here he discusses the intense nationwide debate on the ratification of the Constitution, stressing the continuities between that struggle over the foundations of the national government and the original principles of the Revolution.
-
5 out of 5 stars
-
Bernard Bailyn is a genius!
- By John M. Crean on 04-21-19
By: Bernard Bailyn
What listeners say about Fire and Light
Average customer ratingsReviews - Please select the tabs below to change the source of reviews.
-
Overall5 out of 5 stars
-
Performance5 out of 5 stars
-
Story5 out of 5 stars
- Maria
- 12-24-16
it was great very useful<br />
it was great. very useful .would recommend to friends.kt was interesting from beginning to end. one of my favorites ever
Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
You voted on this review!
You reported this review!
1 person found this helpful