The Americas category has 777 audiobooks on Listento.it, with an average listener rating of 4.5★ across 2,631 ratings. The most-rated is Endurance.
The Underground Railroad
Summary
If you want to discover the captivating history of the Underground Railroad, then pay attention... The Underground Railroad wasn’t underground. Nor was it a railroad. It was, however, an awe-inspiring piece of history, and one that speaks of hope even today. Two hundred years ago, slavery had the Southern United States firmly in its evil grip. Around four million African Americans languished in the most appalling of living conditions, their lives controlled by people who saw them as objects. They were starved, whipped, and put to work despite being pregnant, sick, or so young that they could barely walk. They were despised, downtrodden, and degraded in every way. They longed for freedom, yet to reach the free land of Canada, they would have to cross thousands of miles filled with the threat of slave catchers, men who had made it their business to snatch desperate people who were on the very brink of liberty. It was a hopeless time, but it was also a time of heroes. The only hope that these enslaved people had of escaping their brutal fates was the Underground Railroad. This fabled network of people and places delivered tens of thousands of escaped slaves all the way across the northern United States and into Canada. And while many of the people who made these escapes possible have melted away into history as faceless heroes, we know the names and stories of many. Their stories are some of the most inspiring that we will ever hear. In this audiobook, you will discover topics such as: Slavery through the ages Abolition around the World Abolition in the United States Heroes of the Underground Railroad And much, much more! So if you want to learn more about the history of the Underground Railroad, buy this audiobook now!
©2020 Captivating History (P)2021 Captivating History
Spanish Flu of 1918 and the Pandemics History
Summary
The Spanish Flu was one of the deadliest viral outbreaks in history. It erupted just as World War I was coming to an end in 1918. The virus wreaked havoc across the entire world and ravaged as many 50 million lives by conservative estimates. While we do not know about the true epicenter of the fatal disease, it spread globally with soldiers as carriers. While the sad event is etched on the hearts of those who suffered from it, those who lived to tell about it also shared the lessons learned. Many of the lessons that had been learned in the wake of the devastation were applied in the current pandemic spread. We need to also be prepared should a similar situation arise, again, in the future. Here’s a preview of this special book, and what else you’ll discover: Rise of the Spanish Flu as the silent killer and how it was detected The trail of how it spread country by country to decimate hoards of people How utter confusion and affliction became commonplace The courageous stance of front-line workers in the fight How the best minds proposed solutions to curtail further spread What actions were taken globally in search for a cure
©2020 Barry Larson (P)2020 Barry Larson
History of Cuba: Cuba Libre! (Cuba Best Seller, Volume 1)
Summary
Learn everything you need to know about the history of Cuba! Have you always been interested in Cuba, its people, and its history and fascinated with Cuban beliefs? Then this audiobook is essential! Cuba has a certain charm that may not be experienced anywhere else in the world. The culture of Cuba is vibrant and varied, and its music - rumba, timba, and salsa, among other music styles - has become globally renowned. As a former Spanish colony, it shares numerous cultural traits with neighboring Caribbean, South American, and Central American countries. History of Cuba: Cuba Libre! - Cuban History from Christopher Columbus to Fidel Castro by Carlos Fernando Alvarez offers a multifaceted, true story of history, politics, crime, freedom, revolution, and international conflict. As Cuba is a homeland with a long and rich history, the study of Cuban history is also the study of the development of the New World by Europe. Cuba played a significant role in the growth of the New World, and through its history, it has been a part of most important world events that have taken place around it. History of Cuba: Cuba Libre! is intended to acquaint listeners with a general overview of Cuban history, its freedom, and the situation that made that development possible. You will learn about the following: The culture, history and politics of the people of Cuba Pre-Spanish and Spanish occupation The wars for independence US occupation and the Platt Amendment Cuba’s reform movements The Cuban Republic and revolution The Castro era Cuba in the Cold War era Cuba-US relations and the trade embargo The history of Havana and lots more Order this audiobook now!
©2017 Carlos Fernando Alvarez (P)2018 Carlos Fernando Alvarez
The Culper Ring
Summary
After the siege of Boston forced the British to evacuate that city in March 1776, Continental Army commander George Washington suspected that the British would move by sea to New York City, the next logical target in an attempt to end a colonial insurrection. He thus rushed his army south to defend the city. Washington guessed correctly, but it would be to no avail. Unlike Boston, New York City's terrain featured few defensible positions. The city lacked a high point from which to launch a siege, as the peninsula of Boston was fortunate to have. Moreover, Washington wasn't sure defending the city was necessary, hoping that an expedition launched toward Quebec like the one Benedict Arnold had led in late 1775 would keep the British away from New York anyway. However, Congress thought otherwise, and demanded that Washington defend New York. Washington thus did what he was told, and it nearly resulted in the army's demise.
©2016 Charles River Editors (P)2016 Charles River Editors
Thomas Jefferson's Education
Summary
From a Pulitzer Prize-winning historian comes a brilliant, absorbing study of Thomas Jefferson’s campaign to save Virginia through education. By turns entertaining and tragic, this beautifully written history reveals the origins of a great university in the dilemmas of Virginia slavery. It offers an incisive portrait of Thomas Jefferson set against a social fabric of planters in decline, enslaved black families torn apart by sales, and a hair-trigger code of male honor. A man of “deft evasions” who was both courtly and withdrawn, Jefferson sought control of his family and state from his lofty perch at Monticello. Never quite the egalitarian we wish him to be, he advocated emancipation but shrank from implementing it, entrusting that reform to the next generation. Devoted to the education of his granddaughters, he nevertheless accepted their subordination in a masculine culture. During the revolution, he proposed to educate all white children in Virginia, but later in life he narrowed his goal to building an elite university. In 1819 Jefferson’s intensive drive for state support of a new university succeeded. His intention was a university to educate the sons of Virginia’s wealthy planters, lawyers, and merchants, who might then democratize the state and in time rid it of slavery. But the university’s students, having absorbed the traditional vices of the Virginia gentry, preferred to practice and defend them. Opening in 1825, the university nearly collapsed as unruly students abused one another, the enslaved servants, and the faculty. Jefferson’s hopes of developing an enlightened leadership for the state were disappointed, and Virginia hardened its commitment to slavery in the coming years. The university was born with the flaws of a slave society. Instead, it was Jefferson’s beloved granddaughters who carried forward his faith in education by becoming dedicated teachers of a new generation of women.
©2019 Alan Taylor (P)2019 Recorded Books
Andrew Jackson
Summary
The most famous American of his time, Andrew Jackson is a seminal figure in American history. The first "common man" to rise to the presidency, Jackson embodied the spirit and the vision of the emerging American nation; the term "Jacksonian democracy" is embedded in our national lexicon. With the sweep, passion, and attention to detail that made The First American a Pulitzer Prize finalist and a national best seller, historian H.W. Brands shapes a historical narrative that's as fast-paced and compelling as the best fiction. He follows Andrew Jackson from his days as rebellious youth, risking execution to free the Carolinas of the British during the Revolutionary War, to his years as a young lawyer and congressman from the newly settled frontier state of Tennessee. As general of the Tennessee militia, he put down a massive Indian uprising in the South, securing the safety of American settlers, and his famous rout of the British at the Battle of New Orleans during the War of 1812 made him a national hero. But it is Jackson's contributions as president, however, that won him a place in the pantheon of America's greatest leaders. A man of the people, without formal education or the family lineage of the Founding Fathers, he sought as president to make the country a genuine democracy, governed by and for the people. Jackson, although respectful of states' rights, devoted himself to the preservation of the Union, whose future in that age was still very much in question. When South Carolina, his home state, threatened to secede over the issue of slavery, Jackson promised to march down with 100,000 federal soldiers should it dare.
©2005 H.W. Brands (P)2005 Random House, Inc. Random House Audio, a division of Random House, Inc.
Deadly Voyage
Summary
This is the harrowing story of one of the worst shipwrecks in Great Lakes history. In the early morning hours of November 29, 1966, the SS Daniel J. Morrell was caught in a deadly storm on Lake Huron. Waves higher than the ship crested over it, and winds exceeding 60 miles per hour whipped at its hull, splitting the 603-foot freighter into two giant pieces. Amazingly, after the bow went down, the stern blindly powered itself through the stormy seas for another five miles! Twenty-eight men drowned in the icy waters of Lake Huron, but one sailor - 26-year-old Dennis Hale - miraculously survived the treacherous storm. Wearing only boxer shorts, a lifejacket, and a pea coat, Hale clung to a life raft in near-freezing temperatures for 38 hours until he was rescued late in the afternoon of the following day. Three of his fellow crewmates died in his raft. In Deadly Voyage, Andrew Kantar recounts this tale of tragedy and triumph on Lake Huron. Informed by meticulous research and the eyewitness details provided by Hale, Kantar depicts one of the most tragic shipwrecks in Great Lakes history. The book is published by Michigan State University Press.
©2009 Andrew Kantar (P)2015 Redwood Audiobooks
The Great Book of California
Summary
Are you interested in learning more about California? Sure, you’ve heard of Hollywood, but how much do you really know about the Golden State? Do you know how it got its nickname or what it was nicknamed first? There’s so much to know about California that even people born in the state don’t know it all. In this trivia guide, you’ll learn more about California’s history, pop culture, folklore, sports, and so much more! In The Great Book of California, you’ll discover the answers to the following questions Why is California called the Golden State? What music genres started out in California? Which celebrity sex icon’s death remains a mystery? Which serial killer once murdered in the state? Which childhood toy started out in California? Which famous fast-food chain opened its first location in the Golden State? Which famous athletes are from California? These are just a few of the many facts you’ll find in this audiobook. Some of them will be entertaining, some of them will be tragic, and some of them may haunt you, but all of them will be interesting! This audiobook is full of everything you’ve ever wondered about California and then some! Whether you consider yourself a California-state expert or you know nothing about the Golden State, you’re bound to learn something new in each chapter. You’ll be able to impress your college history professor or your friends during your next trivia night! What are you waiting for? Get started to learn all there is to know about California!
©2018 LAK Publishing (P)2018 LAK Publishing
The Spanish Flu
Summary
Discover the remarkable history of the Spanish Flu.... The 1918 outbreak of the H1N1 strain of influenza, popularly known as the Spanish flu, killed more people worldwide than World War I, which ended the same year. It infected nearly one-third of the world's population and killed 10 percent of those it struck. In its wake, schools and businesses closed, hospitals became overwhelmed, and the sick spilled out into makeshift care centers in public spaces. Policemen, public transportation workers, and everyday citizens in face masks were a common - and eerie - sight. Yet, discussion of this global pandemic often takes a backseat to World War I and other contemporary events. In this book, we revisit this terrifying time that left the world in fear. Discover a plethora of topics such as The World in 1918 The Beginning of the Outbreak What Was the Spanish Flu? The Third and Final Wave Aftermath The Strange Legacy of the Spanish Flu And Much More! So if you want a concise and informative book on the Spanish Flu, simply scroll up and click the "Buy" button for instant access!
©2020 Hourly History (P)2020 Hourly History
American History by the State: Interesting Stories and Random Facts About Texas, California, and New York
Summary
Rich history, important figures, and massive events that rocked the entire continent; each of the 50 states comprising the United States has been the scene of enormous moments in history that are the subject of study all over the world. Knowing such facts and being able to recognize the details of culture, folklore, and sports (among many other pieces of trivia) are gifts that very few have, even those that can boast living in certain states all of their lives. In this American History by the State box set, we provide you with the trivia and facts surrounding three of the most emblematic states in the US: Texas, New York, and California: Learn how Texas earned its name, “The Lone Star State”, as well as discovering more about its mysteries in The Great Book of Texas. Discover just how the beloved Statue of Liberty found its way into history and became quite possibly the most recognized city emblem in the world in our Great Book of New York. Open the floodgates of knowledge surrounding the powerful media industry in the Golden State, and find out more about how it came to reach its peak in the Great Book of California! Every state has its history and every history has its facts - our goal is to provide you with everything you will need to know, and which not even your professors or parents taught you. Get it today and start learning just what makes each state across the United States unlike any other!
©2019 LAK Publishing (P)2019 LAK Publishing
Love and Hate in Jamestown
Summary
A gripping narrative of one of the great survival stories of American history: the opening of the first permanent English settlement in the New World. Drawing on period letters and chronicles, and on the papers of the Virginia Company - which financed the settlement of Jamestown - David Price tells a tale of cowardice and courage, stupidity and brilliance, tragedy and costly triumph. He takes us into the day-to-day existence of the English men and women whose charge was to find gold and a route to the Orient, and who found, instead, hardship and wretched misery. Death, in fact, became the settlers' most faithful companion, and their infighting was ceaseless. Price offers a rare balanced view of the relationship between the settlers and the natives. He unravels the crucial role of Pocahontas, a young woman whose reality has been obscured by centuries of legend and misinformation (and, more recently, animation). He paints indelible portraits of Chief Powhatan, the aged monarch who came close to ending the colony's existence, and Captain John Smith, the former mercenary and slave, whose disdain for class distinctions infuriated many around him - even as his resourcefulness made him essential to the colony's success. Love and Hate in Jamestown is a superb work of popular history, reminding us of the horrors and heroism that marked the dawning of our nation.
©2007 David A. Price (P)2020 Random House Audio
The History of the United States
Summary
If you want to discover the captivating history of the United States, then pay attention.... When the first settlers reached the United States of America and started to chip out a living in the wilderness that seemed so fierce and unfamiliar to their European eyes, they could never have dreamed that someday the land upon which they stood would become one of the most powerful countries in the entire world. When the preachers of the Great Awakening stood on the backs of wagons or bits of old tree stumps and told the American people a new story of individual freedom and the power of ordinary people, they could never have dreamed that their preaching would trigger a landslide of abolitionism that would end in a civil war that almost tore the entire country apart. As for Martin Luther King, Jr., he did dream. He had a dream of equality and brotherhood, and his dream at least partially came true in 2008 when America saw the inauguration of its first black president. Never could the slaves of the great plantations of the South have dreamed that day would ever come, but it did. Nobody could have dreamed it, but it all came to pass, and it became the history of the United States of America. And this is how it all happened.... In The History of the United States: A Captivating Guide to American History, Including Events Such as the American Revolution, French and Indian War, Boston Tea Party, Pearl Harbor, and the Gulf War, you will discover topics such as: The People Who Were There First A Time of Exploration Colonizing America The French and Indian War The Boston Tea Party The American Revolution The First President Restless Times Horrors for the Natives Civil War And Much, Much More! So if you want to learn more about the history of the United States, then scroll up and click the "Buy" button!
©2019 Captivating History (P)2019 Captivating History
So You Think You Know Canada, Eh?
Summary
How well do you really know Canada? Did you know: Santa Claus is a Canadian citizen? That hockey is not the official national sport of Canada? The Canadian passport contains hidden images? Canada could have been named Britannia or Borealia? Parts of Canada are as cold as Mars? A Canadian pharmacist invented peanut butter? If you're Canadian, know any Canadians, or have ever wanted to know more about Canada, this fun little fact book will help. Inside this short and easy fun-fact book, you'll discover interesting and fascinating nuggets of knowledge and trivia about: The kind people who live there All things maple syrup A list of cool Canadian inventions Famous and amazing Canadians Unique history The breathtaking nature A few words to help you speak Canadian This is a great gift for family, friends, coworkers, and anyone you think would enjoy learning more about Canada.
©2019 Knowledge Nugget Books (P)2020 Knowledge Nugget Books
The Soul of America
Summary
If you have found U.S. history boring in the past, this program is a must! Jacob Needleman, internationally acclaimed author and philosopher, takes us on a journey back to the beginning of America, re-telling the story of the country in a way that inspires and invites us to explore the lives of our forefathers and the sacred dimension of their founding principles. His portraits of Washington, Jefferson and other famous historical figures ignites our imagination, and instills in us a deep reverence and appreciation for the unwavering vision that was necessary to establish our government. In his re-telling of the American story, Needleman brings to light the nation's deep hunger for meaning. "The human psyche needs the nourishment of great philosophical ideas. These ideas have been part of great cultures, and were once a part of America. America needs to bring these ideas back to the culture." Jacob Needleman is a professor of philosophy at San Francisco State University and the author of many books including The American Soul (Tarcher 2003), The Wisdom of Love (Morning Light Press 2005), Time and the Soul (Berrett-Koehler 2003), The Heart of Philosophy (Tarcher 2003), Lost Christianity (Tarcher 2003), Money and the Meaning of Life (Currency 1994), A Little Book on Love (Doubleday 1996), A Sense of the Cosmos: Scientific Knowledge and Spiritual Truth (Monkfish Book Publishing 2003), and Why We Can't Be Good (Tarcher 2007). In addition to his teaching and writing, he serves as a consultant in the fields of psychology, education, medical ethics, philanthropy, and business, and has been featured on Bill Moyers's acclaimed PBS series A World of Ideas.
©2001 New Dimensions Foundation (P)2008 New Dimensions Foundation
Bound Away
Summary
Bound Away offers a new understanding of the westward movement. After the Turner thesis, which celebrated the frontier as the source of American freedom and democracy, and the iconoclasm of the new western historians who dismissed the idea of the frontier as merely a mask for conquest and exploitation, David Hackett Fischer and James C. Kelly take a third approach to the subject. They share with Turner the idea of the westward movement as a creative process of high importance in American history, but they understand it in a different way. Where Turner studied the westward movement in terms of its destination, Fischer and Kelly approach it in terms of its origins. Virginia's long history enables them to provide a rich portrait of migration and expansion as a dynamic process that preserved strong cultural continuities. They suggest that the oxymoron "bound away" - from the folk song "Shenandoah" - captures a vital truth about American history. As people moved west, they built new societies from old materials, in a double-acting process that made America what it is today. Fischer and Kelly believe that the westward movement was a broad cultural process, which is best understood not only through the writings of intellectual elites, but also through the physical artifacts and folkways of ordinary people. The wealth of anecdotes in this volume offer a new way of looking at John Smith and William Byrd, George Washington and Thomas Jefferson, Daniel Boone, Dred Scott, and scores of lesser known gentry, yeomen, servants, and slaves who were all "bound away" to an old new world.
©2000 Virginia Historical Society and David Hackett Fischer (P)2010 Redwood Audiobooks
Native American Tribes: The History and Culture of the Inuit (Eskimos)
Summary
"We are told today that Inuit never had laws or 'maligait'. Why? They say because they are not written on paper. When I think of paper, I think you can tear it up, and the laws are gone. The laws of the Inuit are not on paper." - Mariano Aupilaarjuk From the "Trail of Tears" to Wounded Knee and Little Bighorn, the narrative of American history is incomplete without the inclusion of the Native Americans that lived on the continent before European settlers arrived in the 16th and 17th centuries. Since the first contact between natives and settlers, tribes like the Sioux, Cherokee, and Navajo have both fascinated and perplexed outsiders with their history, language, and culture. In Charles River Editors' Native American Tribes series, listeners can get caught up to speed on the history and culture of North America's most famous native tribes in the time it takes to finish a commute, while learning interesting facts long forgotten or never known. North Americans have long been fascinated by the Inuit, but this level of interest has been matched by a general lack of knowledge about the group itself. For centuries, they have been called Eskimos, despite the fact there are distinct differences within the group and many of them find the use of the word Eskimo offensive. With that said, the group's lifestyle has long been of interest to outsiders simply based on the fact that it's so different. The Inuit live in harsh Arctic climates in Canada, America, Russia, and even Greenland, and they are descendants of the very people who historians believe crossed the landbridge that once connected Russia to Alaska thousands of years ago.
©2012 Charles River Editors (P)2015 Charles River Editors
Native Americans: A Captivating Guide to Native American History and the Trail of Tears, Including Tribes Such as the Cherokee, Muscogee Creek, Seminole, Chickasaw, and Choctaw Nations
Summary
If you want to discover Native American history, then keep reading.... Two captivating manuscripts in one audiobook: Native American History: A Captivating Guide to the Long History of Native Americans Including Stories of the Wounded Knee Massacre, Native American Tribes, Hiawatha and More Trail of Tears: A Captivating Guide to the Forced Removals of Cherokee, Muscogee Creek, Seminole, Chickasaw, and Choctaw Nations “History is written by the victors,” said the victor Winston Churchill. But does that compromise the truth of what really happened? In this new bundle audiobook from Captivating History, you will discover the shocking and controversial history of the Native Americans. Part one of this audiobook include topics such as: Startling theories of the arrival of the first Native Americans The current understanding of similar and rival tribes based on region Arctic and Subarctic tribes and nations Northeastern and Southeastern peoples The Seminole Wars Sitting Bull - Fighting despite all odds Wounded Knee The unbreakable code of the Code Talkers And a great deal more you don't want to miss out on! The following topics will be covered in part two of this audiobook: The early relationship The growth of Manifest Destiny The discovery of gold and the Indian Removal Act Peaceful protests and a push for recognition The people versus the president The militia force removal The Trail of Tears Stories of pain, loss, and love Making a new home And a great deal more you don't want to miss out n! Listen to this audiobook now to learn more about Native American history!
©2018 Captivating History (P)2018 Captivating History
Oh What a Slaughter
Summary
In Oh What a Slaughter, Larry McMurtry has written a unique, brilliant, and searing history of the bloody massacres that marked, and marred, the settling of the American West in the 19th century, and which still provoke immense controversy today. Here are the true stories of the West's most terrible massacres: Sacramento River, Mountain Meadows, Sand Creek, Marias River, Camp Grant, and Wounded Knee, among others. These massacres involved Americans killing Indians, but also Indians killing Americans, and, in the case of the hugely controversial Mountain Meadows Massacre in 1857, Mormons slaughtering a party of American settlers, including women and children. McMurtry's evocative descriptions of these events recall their full horror, and the deep, constant apprehension and dread endured by both pioneers and Indians. By modern standards the death tolls were often small, Custer's famous defeat at Little Big Horn in 1876 was the only encounter to involve more than 200 dead, yet in the thinly populated West of that time, the violent extinction of a hundred people had a colossal impact on all sides. Though the perpetrators often went unpunished, many guilty and traumatized men felt compelled to tell and retell the horrors they had committed. From letters and diaries, McMurtry has created a moving and swiftly paced narrative, as memorable in its way as such classics as Evan S. Connell's Son of the Morning Star and Dee Brown's Bury My Heart at Wounded Knee.
©2005 Larry McMurtry (P)2005 Tantor Media, Inc.
Restless Giant
Summary
Following up Grand Expectations in the Oxford History of the United States, Restless Giant provides a crisp, concise assessment of the 27 years between the resignation of Richard Nixon and the election of George W. Bush, in a sweeping narrative that seamlessly weaves together social, cultural, political, economic, and international developments. In exploring a wide range of cultural, social, and economic concerns, Patterson and engrossing narrator Robert Fass show how the persistence of racial tensions, high divorce rates, alarm over crime, and urban decay all led many writers to portray this era as one of decline. Restless Giant is the 11th volume of the Oxford History of the United States, which includes three Pulitzer Prize winners, a New York Times best seller, and winners of the Bancroft and Parkman Prizes. The Atlantic Monthly has praised it as “state of the art” and “the most distinguished series in American historical scholarship.”
©2005 James T. Patterson (P)2010 Audible, Inc.
The Compleat Victory
Summary
In the late summer and fall of 1777, after two years of indecisive fighting on both sides, the outcome of the American War of Independence hung in the balance. Having successfully expelled the Americans from Canada in 1776, the British were determined to end the rebellion the following year and devised what they believed a war-winning strategy, sending General John Burgoyne south to rout the Americans and take Albany. When British forces captured Fort Ticonderoga with unexpected ease in July of 1777, it looked as if it was a matter of time before they would break the rebellion in the North. Less than three and a half months later, however, a combination of the Continental Army and Militia forces forced Burgoyne to surrender his entire army. The American victory stunned the world and changed the course of the war. In the end, British plans were undone by a combination of distance, geography, logistics, and an underestimation of American leadership and fighting ability. The outcome forced the British to rethink their strategy, inflamed public opinion in England against the war, boosted Patriot morale, and led directly to the Franco-American alliance. Weddle unravels the web of contingencies and the play of personalities that ultimately led to what one American general called "the Compleat Victory".
©2021 Oxford University Press (P)2021 Tantor