American Chronicles: The Civil War by NPR (Audiobook Review)

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Title: The Civil War
Series: American Chronicles
Author: NPR
Narrator: Neal Conan
Copyright: 2011, HighBridge Audio
Duration: 2 hours, 59 minutes
Genres: non fiction, military, historical
Filed in: Audiobook Reviews
Review copy provided by HighBridge Audio.

PUBLISHER’S SUMMARY: NPR captures the battlefield action, the personal struggles, and the moral dilemmas of the war that pitted brother against brother (and sometimes sister) and friend against friend. This revealing collection of Civil War stories features gripping history, expert commentary, and unforgettable voices.
Internationally acclaimed, NPR produces and distributes programming that reaches a combined audience of 26.4 million listeners weekly, and, unlike other media, NPR’s audience continues to grow. NPR member organizations operate 784 stations, and another 117 public radio stations also present NPR programs, for a total of more than 900 stations nationwide that broadcast NPR programming.
Copyright 2011 HighBridge Audio

AUDIOBOOK REVIEW: If you’re looking for a fact-filled and heartfelt documentary, you need look no further than NPR. They’ve been producing award-winning documentaries for a long time, and they’re pretty good at it. In The Civil War, the first installment in NPR’s new American Chronicles series, we get some vivid memories and accounts of one of our nation’s darkest hours. This is not the bland statistical information that you might find in a history book, but the true-life stories that really drive it home.
In this three hour reproduction of the radio broadcast, you’ll find real accounts, from real people, like a man who actually witnessed Lincoln’s Gettysburg Address, and recorded his thoughts and memories of the day onto a 78 rpm record in 1938. There are also interviews with noted Civil War historians such as Shelby Foote, Geraldine Brooks, and E.L. Doctorow. In addition, there are segments that explore the origins of timely songs like Dixie, and The Battle Hymn of the Republic. One of my favorite segments on the three CD set, was the story of the girl who dressed up in a Union uniform so she could fight alongside the men, which she did for the duration of the war. Naturally, in addition to the colorful human interest stories, you’ll also find accounts of the major battles of the Civil War: First and second Manassas, Antietam, Vicksburg, it’s all here.
Narrator Neal Conan is an award winning journalist, and is host of Talk of the Nation, a national news-talk call-in show on NPR news. He has been involved with NPR for more than 25 years in a wide variety of functions.
For history buffs, this one’s a no-brainer. I highly recommend NPR’s American Chronicles: The Civil War. Personally, I felt at once humbled and proud as I listened to this unabridged production. Humbled to learn more of the war that nearly ripped our nation in two, and proud of the way that, in the end, it held together. I can’t wait to hear more from the American Chronicles series.

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Get “NPR’s American Chronicles: The Civil War” from HighBridge Audio.

This audiobook review is based on the unabridged audiobook.
Audiobook review by Steven Brandt
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