Lone Star Rising

The Revolutionary Birth of the Texas Republic

By: William C. Davis

Narrated by: Jonathan Hogan

No historian has been able to capture so elegantly the factors influencing the formation of the state of Texas. Three-time winner of the Jefferson Davis Award, William C. Davis precisely describes the spirit of the times during this momentous period. The conflicts between Anglo Texans, native Tejanos, and Mexican officials that led to war come to life with invigorating detail.©2004 William C. Davis (P)2004 Recorded Books, LLC

Not Bad

I actually thought that this one was pretty good. Yes there was some minor repetition, but only when necessary. This was an easy listen and was interesting.

Well written history of Texas.

Lone Star Rising is an entertaining, well-written, and honest treatment of Texas history. Readers with an appreciation for history and adventure will enjoy it.

Extreme detail about Texas becoming a Texas.

What did you love best about Lone Star Rising?

The detail. Where and how the culture of Texas was formed. There was so much I did not know and so much helped me make a lot of sense of why Texas culture is like it is today.

Who was your favorite character and why?

Sam Houston. The book made him real. Extremely complex.

What does Jonathan Hogan bring to the story that you wouldn’t experience if you just read the book?

He read very well and with passion for a book compromising so much detail.

Was there a moment in the book that particularly moved you?

The battle between Santa Anna and the Texans. I had no idea we were so lucky. Extreme luck.

Any additional comments?

This will teach Texans a lot about their history and to appreciate Tejanos a lot more.

An exceptional consideration of Texas History

A perfect consideration of Tejano and Anglo perspectives on early Texas History. A must read.

Jobathan Hogan Rules

Would you recommend this audiobook to a friend? If so, why?

YES This is one of my earlier audio books I had purchased.Being a Texan I felt it was informative interesting and impressive

Who was your favorite character and why?

Good info about Houston, but Crockett is always a guy’s favorite

Which character – as performed by Jonathan Hogan – was your favorite?

ALL

Was there a moment in the book that particularly moved you?

Alamo

Any additional comments?

A narrator often makes or breaks the book and Jonathan Hogan is probably my favorite =]

Excellent History of Texas Revolution

William C. Davis is one of my favorite American historians. This was a topic I knew very little about, and was not really that interested. However, Davis' book ended up being a "page turner," and I felt like I had a much better understanding of the subject after finishing.

My original thoughts on the narration were that it was, "blah," but no complaints really. This may be a difficult book to speed listen to but only because of the detail and the amount of names, not because of the narration.

The author gives a terrific background of the area to start off the book, one that is quite detailed and may be difficult to follow at times. The reason I say it may be hard to follow has nothing to do with Davis; it's just that the history of the territory is complex. There are so many frequent changes. Davis' recap of all of the failed revolutions prior to Mexican independence is ridiculous detailed. We're talking what seems like dozens of schemes and attempts. It's even hard to tell when Mexico actually does achieve independence.

Throughout the rest of the book the listener will hear about all of those legendary names: Austin, Houston, Bowie, Crockett, et al. Once again, things are very complex and well detailed. The recounting of the battles was the portion of the book that I found most exciting. Much of the rest of the book is quite interesting, but there's a bit of a feeling of just wanting to get to the part where it's decided what the plan is.

Davis covers the post-independence period and the build up to American annexation and the United States' war with Mexico.

As you would expect, Davis attempts to separate myth and legend from fact. With this particular topic, that's a difficult task, but he does a wonderful job.

Disappointing

I generally love history reads but this was painful. I use audible to pass the time while traveling and actually turned this off several times from frustration. Lots of detail with some of it repeated. An abridged version might be the way to go on this one. I liked the backgrounds of Travis, Houston, Austin, etc. You'll need to be a real Texas history buff to enjoy this one!