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The Guns of August
- Narrated by: Wanda McCaddon
- Length: 19 hrs and 9 mins
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Summary
Tuchman masterfully portrays this transition from 19th to 20th Century, focusing on the turning point in the year 1914: the month leading up to the war and the first month of the war. With fine attention to detail, she reveals how and why the war started, and why it could have been stopped but wasn't, managing to make the story utterly suspenseful even when we already know the outcome.
Critic reviews
"More dramatic than fiction...a magnificent narrative - beautifully organized, elegantly phrased, skillfully paced...The product of painstaking and sophisticated research." (Chicago Tribune)
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What listeners say about The Guns of August
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- D C MAWDSLEY
- 07-05-18
Very Interesting
I’d be lying if I said I didn’t get lost in the middle with all the names, but I found it an interesting book and enjoyed ze accents.
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- Deborah
- 01-11-15
A comprehensive and compelling introduction to WW1
This book considers the events of 1914 which led the various fractions within Europe to believe they had no alternative to war. In addition ‘The Guns of August’ continues past the causes of the war and continues to assess the various initial battles which had commenced in the West and the East and the various winners and losers.
I found this book to be very easy to read and comprehend, some history books can be very dry and analytical. However within ‘The Guns of August” I found myself becoming quickly caught up in all the action and events. The writer uses a lot of detail about the events and the various protagonists which paints a vivid picture of their various appearances and characteristics. I found this extra details enabled me to be able to picture the events taking place over a hundred years ago and to feel present within the moment.
A must read for anyone with an interest in history and World War One.
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- "evilpanda"
- 17-01-24
The narration.
Very enjoyable. If you can call industrial slaughter enjoyable, of course. A good work of history.
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- Anonymous User
- 18-10-21
A great boon
Reading a lot of newer books on ww1 I've often heard Tuchmans Guns of August referenced.
In many ways this is the main book on that first month.
Now I finally got round to it and I was not dissapointed. This is truly a masterpiece. That's all there is to it.
Very enjoyable.
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- Mr. C. Bennett
- 17-01-21
A Classic
Detailing the build up to and fighting in the first month of World War One, the book brilliantly describes and explains the origins of trench warfare.
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- Peter lönn
- 20-09-22
An amazing book about a terrible war.
A page turning book with lots of interesting facts and actually some humor. Everybody should read it.
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- John
- 06-12-14
A Classic Account
Any additional comments?
Tuchman's book has been around for a while, but it remains a very good account of the first month of the war. Some understanding of the basic geography of Europe is helpful to understand the movement of armies across territory, but listeners can always check a map between chapters.
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- Manish
- 01-01-15
Brilliant
loved this. great characterisations. beautifully read with the right amount of panache and gravity as required
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- Helena Palmgren
- 23-04-23
A very well written history of war
War is no my favourite subject. But this is a description of the first month of WWI that is something out of the ordinary, With interesting portraits of the main players in Germany, Belgium, Russia, France and England and with a comprehensive, if not sometimes a bit too detailed, description of all the events leading up to the battle of Marne.
It leaves me with a deep feeling of sorrow for the meaningless of war and that the lifes of millions can be in the hands of so mediocre or even useless military commanders.
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- Ed
- 05-06-23
Inspiring
I wondered why both my parents read this book when it was first published and now I know why. The descriptions of battles and the movement of armies are as fluent as the battles were chaotic and the descriptions of the major generals and other leading participants are a lesson in compact brevity.
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