Henry Clay
The Essential American
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Henry Clay
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Narrated by:
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Jonathan Yen
About this listen
He was the Great Compromiser, a canny and colorful legislator whose life mirrors the story of America from its founding until the eve of the Civil War. Speaker of the House, senator, secretary of state, five-time presidential candidate, and idol to the young Abraham Lincoln, Henry Clay is captured in full at last in this rich and sweeping biography.
David S. Heidler and Jeanne T. Heidler present Clay in his early years as a precocious, witty, and optimistic Virginia farm boy who at the age of 20 transformed himself into an attorney. The authors reveal Clay's tumultuous career in Washington, including his participation in the deadlocked election of 1824 that haunted him for the rest of his career, and shine new light on Clay's marriage to plain, wealthy Lucretia Hart, a union that lasted 53 years and produced 11 children.
Featuring an inimitable supporting cast including Thomas Jefferson, James Madison, and Abraham Lincoln, Henry Clay is beautifully written and replete with fresh anecdotes and insights. Horse trader and risk taker, arm twister and joke teller, Henry Clay was the consummate politician who gave ground, made deals, and changed the lives of millions.
©2010 David Heidler and Jeanne Heidler (P)2018 TantorListeners also enjoyed...
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Story5 out of 5 stars 9,731
On May 18, 1860, William H. Seward, Salmon P. Chase, Edward Bates, and Abraham Lincoln waited in their hometowns for the results from the Republican National Convention in Chicago. When Lincoln emerged as the victor, his rivals were dismayed and angry. Throughout the turbulent 1850s, each had energetically sought the presidency as the conflict over slavery was leading inexorably to secession and civil war.
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5 out of 5 stars
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Beautiful, Heartbreaking, and Informative
- By JJ on 09-10-12
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After Lincoln
- How the North Won the Civil War and Lost the Peace
- By: A. J. Langguth
- Narrated by: Tom Perkins
- Length: 13 hrs and 29 mins
- Unabridged
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Overall4 out of 5 stars 76
-
Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 61
-
Story4 out of 5 stars 61
With Abraham Lincoln's assassination, his "team of rivals" was left adrift. President Andrew Johnson, a former slave owner from Tennessee, was challenged by Northern Congressmen, Radical Republicans led by Thaddeus Stephens and Charles Sumner, who wanted to punish the defeated South. When Johnson's policies placated the rebels at the expense of the freed black men, radicals in the House impeached him for trying to fire Secretary of War Edwin Stanton.
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3 out of 5 stars
-
Mediocre
- By Rodney on 10-14-14
By: A. J. Langguth
-
Madison's Gift
- Five Partnerships That Built America
- By: David Stewart
- Narrated by: Grover Gardner
- Length: 14 hrs and 29 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 227
-
Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 210
-
Story4.5 out of 5 stars 210
Short, plain, balding, neither soldier nor orator, low on charisma and high on intelligence, Madison cared more about achieving results than taking the credit. To reach his lifelong goal of a self-governing constitutional republic, he blended his talents with those of key partners. It was Madison who led the drive for the Constitutional Convention and pressed for an effective new government as his patron George Washington lent the effort legitimacy.
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5 out of 5 stars
-
Excellent history of our nation's founding
- By JJay on 02-23-15
By: David Stewart
-
Seward
- Lincoln's Indispensable Man
- By: Walter Stahr
- Narrated by: William Dufris
- Length: 22 hrs and 29 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 146
-
Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 131
-
Story4.5 out of 5 stars 130
From one of our most acclaimed new biographers - the first full life of the leader of Lincoln’s "team of rivals" to appear in more than 40 years. William Henry Seward was one of the most important Americans of the 19th century. Progressive governor of New York and outspoken U.S. senator, he was the odds-on favorite to win the 1860 Republican nomination for president. As secretary of state and Lincoln’s closest adviser during the Civil War, Seward not only managed foreign affairs but had a substantial role in military, political, and personnel matters.
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4 out of 5 stars
-
I Wish Doris Kearns Goodwin Had Written This
- By AR on 06-21-15
By: Walter Stahr
-
Henry Clay
- The Man Who Would Be President
- By: James C. Klotter
- Narrated by: James Anderson Foster
- Length: 19 hrs and 12 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 53
-
Performance5 out of 5 stars 48
-
Story5 out of 5 stars 47
Charismatic, charming, and one of the best orators of his era, Henry Clay seemed to have it all. He offered a comprehensive plan of change for America, and he directed national affairs as Speaker of the House, as Secretary of State to John Quincy Adams - the man he put in office - and as acknowledged leader of the Whig party. As the broker of the Missouri Compromise and the Compromise of 1850, Henry Clay fought to keep a young nation united when westward expansion and slavery threatened to tear it apart. Yet, despite his talent and achievements, Henry Clay never became president.
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5 out of 5 stars
-
Wonderful book by a talented writer and historian
- By Timothy on 08-24-18
By: James C. Klotter
-
Woodrow Wilson
- A Biography
- By: John Milton Cooper
- Narrated by: John McDonough
- Length: 35 hrs and 57 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4 out of 5 stars 284
-
Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 234
-
Story4 out of 5 stars 231
John Milton Cooper, Jr., is widely acknowledged as one of the world’s preeminent Woodrow Wilson biographers. This thoroughly researched profile of America’s 28th president is universally hailed for its scholarship and insight into the life and career ofone of the nation’s most polarizing leaders.
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2 out of 5 stars
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On the outside looking in
- By Doris on 09-02-13
-
The Bully Pulpit
- Theodore Roosevelt, William Howard Taft, and the Golden Age of Journalism
- By: Doris Kearns Goodwin
- Narrated by: Edward Herrmann
- Length: 36 hrs and 42 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 4,336
-
Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 3,897
-
Story4.5 out of 5 stars 3,889
Goodwin describes the broken friendship between Teddy Roosevelt and his chosen successor, William Howard Taft. With the help of the "muckraking" press, Roosevelt had wielded the Bully Pulpit to challenge and triumph over abusive monopolies, political bosses, and corrupting money brokers. Roosevelt led a revolution that he bequeathed to Taft only to see it compromised as Taft surrendered to money men and big business. The rupture led Roosevelt to run against Taft for president, an ultimately futile race that gave power away to the Democrats.
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5 out of 5 stars
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Makes You Forget You Live in the 21st Century Good
- By Cynthia on 01-11-14
-
Alexander Hamilton
- By: Ron Chernow
- Narrated by: Scott Brick
- Length: 35 hrs and 58 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall5 out of 5 stars 24,540
-
Performance5 out of 5 stars 21,265
-
Story5 out of 5 stars 21,135
Historians have long told the story of America’s birth as the triumph of Jefferson’s democratic ideals over the aristocratic intentions of Hamilton. Chernow presents an entirely different man, whose legendary ambitions were motivated not merely by self-interest but by passionate patriotism and a stubborn will to build the foundations of American prosperity and power.
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5 out of 5 stars
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An Outstanding & Riveting Book!
- By Kevin on 03-04-05
By: Ron Chernow
-
James Madison
- By: Richard Brookhiser
- Narrated by: Norman Dietz
- Length: 10 hrs and 10 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4 out of 5 stars 267
-
Performance4 out of 5 stars 228
-
Story4 out of 5 stars 227
Eminent historian Richard Brookhiser presents a vivid portrait of James Madison, the “Father of the Constitution” and one of America's greatest statesmen.
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4 out of 5 stars
-
OK book but not a biography
- By Joel Mayer on 08-05-12
-
Star-Spangled Men
- America's Ten Worst Presidents
- By: Nathan Miller
- Narrated by: Andy Caploe
- Length: 9 hrs and 58 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4 out of 5 stars 70
-
Performance4 out of 5 stars 58
-
Story4 out of 5 stars 59
Picking America's best presidents is easy. George Washington, Abraham Lincoln, and Franklin D. Roosevelt usually lead the list. But choosing the nation's worst presidents requires more thought. In Star-Spangled Men, respected presidential biographer Nathan Miller puts on display those leaders who were abject failures as chief executive. With pointed humor and a deft hand, he presents a rogues' gallery of the men who dropped the presidential ball, and sometimes their pants as well.
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4 out of 5 stars
-
Entertaining and factual
- By Sean on 10-25-14
By: Nathan Miller
-
Abraham Lincoln and Civil War America
- A Biography
- By: William E. Gienapp
- Narrated by: L.J. Ganser
- Length: 8 hrs and 28 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall5 out of 5 stars 50
-
Performance5 out of 5 stars 42
-
Story4.5 out of 5 stars 42
In Abraham Lincoln and Civil War America, historian William Gienapp provides a remarkably concise, up-to-date, and vibrant biography of the most revered figure in United States history. While the heart of the book focuses on the Civil War, Gienapp begins with a finely etched portrait of Lincoln's early life, from pioneer farm boy to politician and lawyer in Springfield, to his stunning election as 16th president of the United States. Students will see how Lincoln grew during his years in office and much more.
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5 out of 5 stars
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A great man we could use in the current political climate.
- By dts67 on 01-30-24
-
Jefferson Davis
- The Man and His Hour
- By: William C. Davis
- Narrated by: Jeff Riggenbach
- Length: 30 hrs and 49 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 149
-
Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 136
-
Story4.5 out of 5 stars 137
This book paints a vivid picture of Jefferson Davis as a multifaceted, often charismatic man who mirrored the turbulent times in which he lived and who stood solidly for the South that he loved. Ranging over the complete span of his long life, it shows him as a hardworking Mississippi planter, a compassionate slave owner, a hero of the Mexican War, and an able secretary of war under Franklin Pierce. But it is on the years of the Civil War and Davis’s controversial performance as president of the Confederacy that the book focuses.
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4 out of 5 stars
-
Could be more generous
- By margot on 06-12-13
By: William C. Davis
-
The Summer of 1787
- By: David O Stewart
- Narrated by: George Wilson
- Length: 10 hrs and 47 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 96
-
Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 77
-
Story4.5 out of 5 stars 76
David O. Stewart presents this well-researched account of the U.S. Constitution's creation not as a dry analysis of events, but as a high-powered narrative filled with dramatic intensity and larger-than-life historical figures.
-
5 out of 5 stars
-
Very well done!
- By Alan on 04-20-17
By: David O Stewart
-
Accidental Presidents
- Eight Men Who Changed America
- By: Jared Cohen
- Narrated by: Arthur Morey
- Length: 16 hrs and 57 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 651
-
Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 558
-
Story4.5 out of 5 stars 555
The strength and prestige of the American presidency has waxed and waned since George Washington. Accidental Presidents looks at eight men who came to the office without being elected to it. It demonstrates how the character of the man in that powerful seat affects the nation and world.
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5 out of 5 stars
-
LOVE LOVE LOVE this book
- By Samuel Stephen Ross on 05-03-19
By: Jared Cohen
-
Impeached
- The Trial of President Andrew Johnson and the Fight for Lincoln's Legacy
- By: David O. Stewart
- Narrated by: Paul Boehmer
- Length: 15 hrs and 32 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4 out of 5 stars 82
-
Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 70
-
Story4.5 out of 5 stars 70
In 1868 Congress impeached President Andrew Johnson of Tennessee, the man who had succeeded the murdered Lincoln, bringing the nation to the brink of a second civil war. Enraged to see the freed slaves abandoned to brutal violence at the hands of their former owners, distraught that former rebels threatened to regain control of Southern state governments, and disgusted by Johnson's brawling political style, congressional Republicans seized on a legal technicality as the basis for impeachment - whether Johnson had the legal right to fire his own secretary of war, Edwin Stanton.
-
5 out of 5 stars
-
Highly recommended
- By Eric on 12-12-19
By: David O. Stewart
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Charismatic, charming, and one of the best orators of his era, Henry Clay seemed to have it all. He offered a comprehensive plan of change for America, and he directed national affairs as Speaker of the House, as Secretary of State to John Quincy Adams - the man he put in office - and as acknowledged leader of the Whig party. As the broker of the Missouri Compromise and the Compromise of 1850, Henry Clay fought to keep a young nation united when westward expansion and slavery threatened to tear it apart. Yet, despite his talent and achievements, Henry Clay never became president.
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Holmes twice escaped death as a young Union officer in the Civil War when musket balls barely missed his heart and spinal cord. He lived ever after with unwavering moral courage, scorn for dogma, and an insatiable intellectual curiosity. Named to the Supreme Court by Theodore Roosevelt at age 61, he served for nearly three decades, writing a series of famous, eloquent, and often dissenting opinions that would prove prophetic in securing freedom of speech, protecting the rights of criminal defendants, and ending the Court's reactionary resistance to social and economic reforms.
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5 out of 5 stars
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Very well done!
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American Republics
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Helps the dots of history to today.
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A Decent Overview of Polk's Presidency
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A proper history of an obscure epoch
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Franklin Delano Roosevelt was the longest serving president in US history, reshaping the country during the crises of the Great Depression and World War II. James MacGregor Burns's magisterial two-volume biography tells the complete life story of the fascinating political figure who instituted the New Deal. The Lion and the Fox details Roosevelt's youth, education, and his rise to national prominence, through his first two terms as president. The Soldier of Freedom is a moving profile of a leader gifted with rare political talent in an era of extraordinary challenges.
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Dedicated Author
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John Jay
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John Jay was a central figure in the early history of the American Republic. A New York lawyer, born in 1745, Jay served his country with the greatest distinction, and was one of the most influential of its Founding Fathers. In this first full-length biography of John Jay in almost 70 years, Walter Stahr brings Jay vividly to life, setting his astonishing career against the background of the American Revolution. Drawing on substantial new material, Walter Stahr has written a full and highly enjoyable portrait of both the public and private man.
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balanced
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John Milton Cooper, Jr., is widely acknowledged as one of the world’s preeminent Woodrow Wilson biographers. This thoroughly researched profile of America’s 28th president is universally hailed for its scholarship and insight into the life and career ofone of the nation’s most polarizing leaders.
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2 out of 5 stars
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On the outside looking in
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A Wicked War presents the definitive history of the 1846 war between the United States and Mexico - a conflict that turned America into a continental power. Amy Greenberg describes the battles between American and Mexican armies, but also delineates the political battles between Democrats and Whigs - the former led by the ruthless Polk, the latter by the charismatic Henry Clay and a young representative from Illinois named Abraham Lincoln. Greenberg brilliantly recounts this key chapter in the creation of the United States authority and narrative flair.
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1 out of 5 stars
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Heirs of the Founders
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In the early 1800s, three young men strode onto the national stage, elected to Congress at a moment when the Founding Fathers were beginning to retire to their farms. Daniel Webster of Massachusetts, a champion orator known for his eloquence, spoke for the North and its business class. Henry Clay of Kentucky, as dashing as he was ambitious, embodied the hopes of the rising West. South Carolina's John Calhoun, with piercing eyes and an even more piercing intellect, defended the South and slavery.
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Excellent
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American Sphinx
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For a man who insisted that life on the public stage was not what he had in mind, Thomas Jefferson certainly spent a great deal of time in the spotlight. Historian Joseph J. Ellis sifts the facts shrewdly from the legends and the rumors, treading a path between vilification and hero worship in order to formulate a plausible portrait of the man who still today "hover[s] over the political scene like one of those dirigibles cruising above a crowded football stadium, flashing words of inspiration to both teams".
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3 out of 5 stars
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So: they did the DNA and … time to change appendix
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Polk
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Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 388
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Story4.5 out of 5 stars 388
This is a major political biography of a great American president - who won a war, transformed the government, and doubled the size of the United States...in four years. When Polk was sworn in as the 11th president, what followed was one of the most consequential presidencies in history.
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5 out of 5 stars
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Polk: One of our most important Preidents
- By Rik GNV on 10-12-08
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American Lion
- Andrew Jackson in the White House
- By: Jon Meacham
- Narrated by: Richard McGonagle
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- Unabridged
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Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 1,755
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Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 1,462
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Beloved and hated, venerated and reviled, Andrew Jackson was an orphan who fought his way to the pinnacle of power, bending the nation to his will in the cause of democracy. Jackson's election in 1828 ushered in a new and lasting era in which the people, not distant elites, were the guiding force in American politics. Democracy made its stand in the Jackson years, and he gave voice to the hopes and the fears of a restless, changing nation facing challenging times at home and threats abroad.
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3 out of 5 stars
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Unlikable Old Hickory
- By John M on 01-05-09
By: Jon Meacham
-
James Monroe
- A Life
- By: Tim McGrath
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Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 292
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The extraordinary life of James Monroe: Soldier, senator, diplomat, and the last Founding Father to hold the presidency, a man who helped transform 13 colonies into a vibrant and mighty republic.
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3 out of 5 stars
-
Large and inconsistent, much like Monroe himself.
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By: Tim McGrath
-
Metternich
- Strategist and Visionary
- By: Wolfram Siemann, Daniel Steuer - translator
- Narrated by: Nigel Patterson
- Length: 36 hrs and 57 mins
- Unabridged
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Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 31
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Performance5 out of 5 stars 24
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Story4.5 out of 5 stars 24
Metternich has a reputation as the epitome of reactionary conservatism. Historians treat him as the archenemy of progress, a ruthless aristocrat who used his power as the dominant European statesman of the first half of the nineteenth century to stifle liberalism, suppress national independence, and oppose the dreams of social change that inspired the revolutionaries of 1848. Wolfram Siemann paints a fundamentally new image of the man who shaped Europe for over four decades. He reveals Metternich as more modern and his career much more forward-looking than we have ever recognized.
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4 out of 5 stars
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Very intensely researched
- By PDH on 04-11-23
By: Wolfram Siemann, and others
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Iron Kingdom
- The Rise and Downfall of Prussia, 1600-1947
- By: Christopher Clark
- Narrated by: Shaun Grindell
- Length: 28 hrs and 24 mins
- Unabridged
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Overall4 out of 5 stars 960
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Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 848
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Story4 out of 5 stars 846
In the aftermath of World War II, Prussia - a centuries-old state pivotal to Europe's development - ceased to exist. In their eagerness to erase all traces of the Third Reich from the earth, the Allies believed that Prussia, the very embodiment of German militarism, had to be abolished. But as Christopher Clark reveals in this pioneering history, Prussia's legacy is far more complex.
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1 out of 5 stars
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Let me make it easier for you.
- By alexyakkavoo on 06-03-20
What listeners say about Henry Clay
Average customer ratingsReviews - Please select the tabs below to change the source of reviews.
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Overall5 out of 5 stars
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Performance5 out of 5 stars
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Story5 out of 5 stars
- Gus
- 01-30-21
Great biography
A splendid research; splendid writing. A fascinating biography of an outstanding orator and great American.
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Overall3 out of 5 stars
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Performance5 out of 5 stars
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Story3 out of 5 stars
- Amazon Customer
- 01-03-19
Too much fluff
A great story and a great American. Too much random information that I do not feel was relevant to a story of such a great man of history.
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Overall5 out of 5 stars
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Performance5 out of 5 stars
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Story5 out of 5 stars
- JJDeuce
- 11-21-19
To Know Henry Clay
This is the most complete audiobook I’ve listened to. The story fully portrays Henry Clay. The details are at times overwhelming, sometimes unnecessary. Absent many of them though, the book would lose some of its draw. The narrator, Jonathan Yen, is impeccable.
I wish there were such well-written, detailed, and narrated books about more historical figures.
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Overall5 out of 5 stars
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Performance5 out of 5 stars
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Story5 out of 5 stars
- Owen Cook
- 01-06-20
Fascinating story, nicely told
Spanning the earliest days of the Republic to almost the eve of the Civil War, the life of Henry Clay provides a fascinating window into the development of American institutions and the personalities who shaped them.
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Overall1 out of 5 stars
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Performance3 out of 5 stars
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Story1 out of 5 stars
- Thor Finn
- 08-10-18
"probably" "possibly" "maybe" "could have"
I love biographies. I was looking forward to this one. But...I just got tired of the authors' apparent goal of bringing the events to life. When the British attacked Henry Clay's home when he was four, the troops destroyed much of the furnishings, including the feather beds. Henry's mother is standing there in a snowfall of feathers.
That's when I pulled the plug. I understand the desire to bring the people and their experiences to life. I just am not good at waiting for them while the authors make their imaginings the goal of their writing. The "Woman Who Smashed Codes" moved through the subject's history and the history of the US deftly. It was a wonderful biography.
So, I'm returning this book and not looking back.
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2 people found this helpful