Showing results by publisher "Recorded Books" in Americas

In this series of lectures, Professor Ken Masugi of Johns Hopkins University examines the importance of rhetoric in American politics. Political speeches have, since the nation’s inception, defined and shaped American politics. Professor Masugi demonstrates how the greatest American political speeches take their bearings from the Declaration of Independence and the Federalist Papers.

Professor Mark R. Polelle examines great military leaders in history, beginning with George Washington and moving on to Napoleon, U.S. Grant, Pershing, MacArthur, and Schwarzkopf, among others. The course also addresses the politics of military history and leadership and illustrates the circumstances that enable the rise of great leaders. Perhaps most importantly, Professor Polelle raises and answers that essential question: What is it that makes a good leader?

A fitting capstone for this comprehensive series, this sixth and final installment imparts a learned understanding of the forces that shaped - and continue to shape - Western culture.

Early nineteenth-century America could just about be summed up by Henry David Thoreau's words when he said, "Eastward I go only by force, but westward I go free." It was an exuberant time for the diverse citizens of the United States, who included a range of folk, from mountain men and railroad builders to whalers and farmers, as they pushed forward into the open frontier. And all their hopes and fears are captured in Liberty for All?

A nominee for the National Book Award, Ivan Doig's brilliant memoir shares the experiences and culture that shaped his early years and made him fall in love with the West. From his childhood in a family of homesteaders through the death of his mother and his move to Montana to herd sheep, Doig shows his intimate connection with the American West.

This story chronicles the dark side of the Carribean conquest in Hispaniola. An entire race was extinguised there by Spanish conquistadors who thirsted for gold and land.

The legal system in America is the basis of freedom as we know it today. The system is based, ultimately, on the common law of England, but it has grown, developed, and changed over the years. American law has been a critical factor in American life since colonial times. It has played a role in shaping society, but society - the structure, culture, economy, and politics of the country - has decisively shaped the law. Through history, the legal system has been intimately involved with every major issue in American life.

Abra Dixon is well educated, fashionable, and married to the perfect man. She also runs a film production company with her childhood friend, Natasha. Abra’s perfect life is suddenly thrown off course when her husband leaves her for a sexy young model.As Abra and Natasha try to find a backer for their latest film, they must navigate the opulent world of directors and investors. But now Abra must learn to be single and strong again. In a world where everyone seems so confident, Abra will need to develop her own definition of success.

This course explores the tenures of the men who held our nation's highest office during the 20th-century. The lectures look at each president and examine his strengths and weaknesses, as well as the times in which he served. Through this analysis, listeners will develop a better understanding not only of this supreme office and how it has taken shape, but also how it has shaped America and, indeed, the modern world.

Whirlwind, the twin brother of Stone, disappears during a raid into northeastern New Spain. So Stone brings together Cheyenne, Kiowa, and Gataka warriors to go after his missing brother - but there are many things between earth and sky that oppose his quest.

From woman?s suffrage to Babe Ruth?s home runs, from Louis Armstrong?s jazz to Franklin Delano Roosevelt?s four presidential terms, from the finale of one world war to the dramatic close of the second, War, Peace, and All That Jazz presents the story of some of the most exciting years in U.S. history. With the end of World War I, many Americans decided to live it up, going to movies, driving cars, and cheering baseball games aplenty.

A national best-selling author and founder of the TransAfrica forum, Randall Robinson is one of the most respected voices of the African-American community. In this powerful book, he convincingly argues that African Americans must fight the growing presence of modern prisons, which hold an alarmingly disproportionate number of Black inmates.

It was the largest campaign ever attempted in the Civil War: the Peninsula campaign of 1862. General George McClellan planned to advance from Yorktown up the Virginia Peninsula and destroy the Rebel army in its own capital. But with Robert E. Lee delivering blows to the Union army, McClellan’s plan fell through at the gates of Richmond.

During the early years of the Cold War, the anti-communist witch hunt that we now call McCarthyism swept through American society. It was the most widespread and longest-lasting episode of political repression in American history. Dozens of men and women went to prison, thousands lost their jobs, and untold numbers of others saw what happened to those people and refrained from expressing controversial or unpopular ideas.

According to renowned sociology scholar Donna L. Franklin, relationships between American black men and women are in a state of crisis. The schism between black men and women is the result of complex, large-scale societal, economic, and cultural trends, and the African-American legacy of slavery. Franklin asserts that black men and women need to learn how to work to together for the health and maintenance of the family.

"The real war will never get in the books," Walt Whitman wrote in this diary he kept during the Civil War. Whitman chronicled his visits to Washington, D.C. hospitals where he comforted wounded men and assisted nurses and doctors. This journal, written by one of America's greatest poets and writers, captures the details and ironies of war.

The coauthor, editor, or coeditor of seven books on American politics, Ken Masugi of Johns Hopkins University has been a speechwriter for two cabinet members. Examining the founding of the American political system through the classic works of Democracy in America author Alexis de Tocqueville, this course explores the big ideas of the American experiment.

In these illuminating lectures from Professor Ned Blackhawk (Western Shoshone), a history of Native America is provided from the time shortly before the expeditions of Christopher Columbus to the present. Focusing on the Columbian Exchange, Indians and the American Constitution, American Indian Removal, the Civil War, and the modern age, Professor Blackhawk concludes his revealing course by addressing the issues that continue to affect Native Americans today.

Riveting, moving, and impossible to put down, War, Terrible War takes us into the heart of the Civil War, from the battle of Manassas to the battle of Gettysburg and on to the South's surrender at Appomattox Court House. Follow the common soldiers in blue and gray as they endure long marches, freezing winter camps, and the bloodiest battles ever fought on American soil.

Covering a time of great hope and incredible change, Reconstructing America is a dramatic look at life after the Civil War in the newly re-United States. Railroad tycoons were roaring across the country. New cities sprang up across the plains, and a new and different American West came into being: a land of farmers, ranchers, miners, and city dwellers. Back East, large-scale immigration was also going on, but not all Americans wanted newcomers in the country.