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Don't Know Much About History | 
| Creator: Kenneth C. Davis
Publisher: BDD Audio
Category: Book
List Price: $18.00
Buy Used: $0.25
You Save: $17.75 (99%)
New (9) Used (22) Collectible (3) from $0.25
Avg. Customer Rating:  160 reviews
Sales Rank: 325835
Format: Abridged, Audiobook
Media: Audio Cassette
Number Of Items: 3
Shipping Weight (lbs): 0.4
Dimensions (in): 7.2 x 4.4 x 0.8
ISBN: 0553471031
Dewey Decimal Number: 973
EAN: 9780553471038
ASIN: 0553471031
Publication Date: November 1, 1992
Availability: Usually ships in 1-2 business days
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| Editorial Reviews:
Amazon.com Review
Kenneth Davis's aim in this program, as it is in all the titles of this popular series, is to make learning relevant and fun. He succeeds marvelously. Davis has an easygoing style and a good sense of humor. And most importantly, he knows how to present the "big picture." His history of the United States is not a series of isolated incidents that happened long ago with no bearing on contemporary American life. Listening to this presentation, we recognize patterns, notice how problems of the past resurface in our own present, and realize that history is what makes us today. We are also presented with a look at American history that is far more honest than anything gleaned from traditional textbooks. Heroes and villains alike are presented, warts and all, and the "less savory moments" in America's past are discussed frankly. For, as Davis explains, "the real picture is much more interesting than the historical tummy tuck." The theme running through the program, from pre-European settlement to the Reagan years, is the struggle for power--the never-ending battle between the haves and have-nots that is the "essence of history." Six hundred years of history are broken up into manageable segments though a series of questions (spoken in a number of different voices to help distinguish them from the main narration), each of which is given a specific answer and then discussed in the context of its contemporary setting and perhaps past and future events. This is a crash course that focuses on the basics but will inspire listeners to want to know more--which is really what learning's all about. (Running time: six hours, four cassettes) I--Uma Kukathas/I
Product Description
Who really "discovered" America?brWhy was Kansas "bloody"?brWhat was so "great" about the Great Depression?brbrFrom Kenneth C. Davis, author of iDon't Know Much About(r) Geography, Don't Know Much About(r) the Civil War/i and iDon't Know Much About(r) the Bible,/i comes a lively presentation of the phenomenal bestseller that has brought American history to life for thousands of readers.brbrFrom the first settlements of the continent through Vietnam, Watergate and Reagan, Davis takes listeners on a rollicking ride through 600 years of Americana.With wit, candor and fascinating facts, iDon't Know Much About(r) History/i explodes long-held myths and misconceptions--revealing the very human side of history that the textbooks neglect.brbrIn this entertaining presentation, you'll meet the personalities who helped shape our nation and hear the words and wisdom that have endured through the centuries. From the French and Indian War to Vietnam, from George Washington to George Bush, here is the story of how we got to where we are today--and the questions that have plagued most of us since grade school are more interesting than ever before.
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| Customer Reviews: Read 155 more reviews...
 Very entertaining January 5, 2009
Entertaining reading but his liberal bias shows through very clearly. His take on recent America politics, especially Nixon through Clinton, sounds like any NPR listener.
 Inaccurate, biased, etc. December 31, 2008
Mr. Davis really short changes Jamestown, and gets things wrong. The Captain of the ship was Christopher Newport not John Newport. If you want to know what really happened in Jamestown read David Price's book `Love and Hate in Jamestown'. FYI - 12-year-old Pocahontas would have never had a crush on a short, round, red-headed 45-year-old man(Smith).br /Disinterested grammar school students could learn from it...they would learn some things that aren't true, but they are disinterested so they will promptly forget them anyway.br /Anyone who loves history, or a specific part of history could very likely find themselves annoyed by the things he chooses to ignore and the other things he chooses to harp on forever.br /It can be used for a glossed over timeline of events.
I'll be honest I did not, have not and probably never will sit down and read through this entire book November 21, 2008
1 out of 1 found this review helpful
No - I intend to continue to use this book as a reference book. Occassionally things come up and I want a quick answer about history, I look it up in a book, this book. br /br /The other night my first grader wanted to know more about the timeline between the Revolutionary War and the Civil War. He also wanted to diagram certain events that Presidents encoutered in their presidency. After I closed my mouth and my head stopped spinning, we went to the bookshelf and pulled a number of reference books down to begin our timelines and diagrams. This book saved me - big time. br /br /We were watching National Treasure, and I disputed a fact from the movie, everyone else told me I was crazy, so we looked it up in Don't Know Much About History. br /br /The book begins with the the discovery of America, after the chapter title page there is a summary page of the discussion points you will find in each chapter, usually a brief but relevant synopsis of events. At the end of each chpater is either a breakdown of key informational points or a timeline of events. br /
 Interesting November 2, 2008
1 out of 1 found this review helpful
Interesting but not exactly good to learn US history. If you already know US History I highly recommend it. If you want to learn, try something more traditional first.
 Disappointing October 20, 2008
2 out of 6 found this review helpful
I was hoping to get a nice factual primer on American History when I ordered this book. What I got was a writer projecting his political bias on as many topics as possible. I'm kind of a hybrid Rebuplican/Democrat so I'm far from a right winger. But the left wing slant of this book is obvious and obtrusive from the get go. If this guy wants to impose his political beliefs on others, he should try fiction because history is too important to become an interpretive exercise.br /br /I couldn't recommend this author less.
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