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Chargement... Patriotic Fire: Andrew Jackson and Jean Laffite at the Battle of New Orleanspar Winston Groom
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Inscrivez-vous à LibraryThing pour découvrir si vous aimerez ce livre Actuellement, il n'y a pas de discussions au sujet de ce livre. Excellent and fast paced. Think Americans are down and out? Think we haven't been there before and prevailed? Remember anything about the War that birthed the Star Spangled Banner? Want to know where the concept of one nation at all costs was first reinforced? Want to know why Jackson was such a big deal, and where Davy Crockett and Sam Houston cut their teeth? Want to hear about a charming gentleman pirate whose men helped save the Union from the Union Jack? ( ) http://philobiblos.blogspot.com/2006/06/book-review-patriotic-fire.html I had no idea that Winston Groom (most famous, of course, as the author of Forrest Gump) also has written military histories. I just finished his newest offering, Patriotic Fire: Andrew Jackson and Jean Laffite at the Battle of New Orleans, and wanted to just say a few words about it. First, I should say that I quite enjoyed this book as an account of the battle, as well as a short biographical sketch of many of the major players (Jackson and Laffite, of course, but also several of the British commanders as well). Groom has a well-deployed talent for battlefield description and narrative, which requires a certain kind of writer to do adequately. He tells a good story here, puncutated with parenthetical asides linking the events of 1814-5 to the present through members of his own family. I learned several things in this book, most notably that the British tried to bribe Laffite to join their side and help them take New Orleans before he took up common cause with Jackson and the American troops. Unfortunately, now I must grouse. Groom completely eschews footnotes for this book, and his quasi-bibliographical essay at the end explains little about which sources were used to make which statements (not to mention that many of the sources he uses seem to be early biographies of the participants - not usually the most authoritative sources). I also found some of Groom's hyperbole slightly annoying, as well as his justifications for some conclusions on which prior authors are divided; he basically says he picked the interpretation that made the most sense to him. For serious scholars, there are undoubtedly better options for books on the Battle of New Orleans. If you're looking for nothing more than a good armchair read, however, you could do worse than Patriotic Fire. aucune critique | ajouter une critique
From the author of best-selling works of history and fiction, a fast-paced, enthralling retelling of one of the greatest battles fought on the North American continent, and of the two men who-against all expectations and odds-joined forces to repel the British invasion of New Orleans in December 1814. It has all the ingredients of a high-flying adventure story. Unbeknownst to the combatants, the War of l812 has ended, but Andrew Jackson, a brave, charismatic American general-sick with dysentery and commanding a beleaguered garrison-leads a desperate struggle to hold on to the city of New Orleans and to thwart the army that defeated Napoleon. Helping him is a devilish French pirate, Jean Laffite, who rebuffs a substantial bribe from the British and together with his erstwhile enemy saves the city from invasion . . . much to the grateful chagrin of New Orleanians, shocked to find themselves on the same side as the brazen buccaneer. Winston Groom brings his considerable storytelling gifts to the re-creation of this remarkable battle and to the portrayal of its main players. Against the richly evocative backdrop of French New Orleans, he illuminates Jackson's brilliant strategy and tactics, as well as the antics and cutthroat fighting prowess of Laffite and his men. Patriotic Fire brings this extraordinary military achievement vividly to life. Aucune description trouvée dans une bibliothèque |
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Google Books — Chargement... GenresClassification décimale de Melvil (CDD)973.5History and Geography North America United States 1809-1845Classification de la Bibliothèque du CongrèsÉvaluationMoyenne:
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