Audiobook Sample
Listen to the sample to experience the story.
Please wait while we verify your browser...
- Title: Ulysses S. Grant
- Author: Owen Wister
- Narrator: David Wales
- Length: 02:47:00
- Version: Abridged
- Release Date: 01/01/2011
- Publisher: LibriVox
- Genre: Biography & Memoir, History & Culture
- ISBN13: SABLIBX978391
As I settled into my favorite armchair with a cup of oolong tea, the familiar creak of leather-bound volumes surrounding me, I pressed play on Owen Wister’s ‘Ulysses S. Grant’ narrated by David Wales. This experience transported me back to my graduate seminar at Berkeley where we examined how different mediums shape historical narratives – much like when we compared the various versions of ‘Cloud Atlas.’ The contrast between traditional biography and audiobook format became immediately apparent in this listening experience.
Wister’s concise biography (a mere 145 pages in print) presents an early 20th-century perspective on Grant that fascinates me as a cultural historian. Published in 1901, it captures a transitional moment in Grant’s posthumous reputation – no longer the uncontested war hero, not yet the complex figure modern historians would reveal. The text’s brevity reminds me of Japanese haibun narratives I studied in Tokyo, where every word carries disproportionate weight.
David Wales’ narration proves particularly effective in conveying Grant’s military campaigns. His measured cadence during descriptions of Vicksburg and Appomattox creates an almost tactical rhythm, mirroring Grant’s own relentless momentum. However, I found myself wishing for more vocal variation during political sections – the scandals of Grant’s presidency deserve the same dramatic treatment as his battlefield triumphs.
Through a cultural lens, what fascines me most is how Wister’s Western fiction background (remember ‘The Virginian’?) colors his portrayal. He frames Grant as the ultimate frontier hero transposed to Washington, a reading that explains both the biography’s strengths (vivid action sequences) and limitations (oversimplified political analysis). This reminds me of when I first noticed how genre expectations shape biographical writing during my doctoral research.
The audiobook excels in its treatment of Grant’s character. Wales’ gravelly timbre perfectly captures the general’s famous stoicism, particularly in sections drawn from Grant’s memoirs. Yet modern listeners should approach Wister’s interpretation of Reconstruction with caution – his early 1900s perspective shows its age when discussing racial matters, much like how my students initially struggle with period-appropriate readings of Twain’s dialect.
Compared to comprehensive modern biographies like Jean Edward Smith’s ‘Grant,’ this work serves better as an introduction than definitive study. Its value lies in capturing a specific historical moment’s view of history – similar to how we analyze multiple translations of Murakami to understand shifting cultural perceptions.
For those seeking an accessible entry point to Grant’s life or a case study in evolving historical interpretation, this free LibriVox production offers rewarding listening. Pair it with Grant’s own memoirs (available as audiobook) for fascinating contrast between primary and secondary sources – an exercise I often assign to demonstrate historiography in action.
In scholarly appreciation,
Prof. Emily Chen
