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A Voyage Long and Strange: Rediscovering the New World Audiobook
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(3.01) - 3,485 listener ratings
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Publisher Description
On a chance visit to Plymouth Rock, Tony Horwitz makes an unsettling discovery. A history buff since early childhood, expensively educated at university—a history major, no less!—he’s reached middle age with a third-grader’s grasp of early America. In fact, he’s mislaid more than a century of American history, the period separating Columbus’s landing in 1492 from the arrival of English colonists at Jamestown in 160-something. Did nothing happen in between? Horwitz decides to find out, and in A VOYAGE LONG AND STRANGE he uncovers the neglected story of America’s founding by Europeans. He begins a thousand years ago, with the Vikings, and then tells the dramatic tale of conquistadors, castaways, French voyageurs, and many others who roamed and rampaged across half the states of the present-day U.S. continent, long before the Mayflower landed. To explore this history and its legacy in the present, Horwitz embarks on an epic quest of his own—trekking in search of grape-rich Vinland, Ponce de León’s Fountain of Youth, Coronado’s Cities of Gold, Walter Raleigh’s Lost Colonists, and other mysteries of early America. And everywhere he goes, Horwitz probes the revealing gap between fact and legend, between what we enshrine and what we forget. An irresistible blend of history, myth, and misadventure, A VOYAGE LONG AND STRANGE allows us to rediscover the New World for ourselves.
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"A fantastic read, rich with the lost history of America. From Lief Erikson through the Mayflower pilgrims, Horowitz tells the story of our fair land that most of us never heard - the conquistadors' trips through the south and the great plains, the founding of the first European settlement in the US (hint: it wasn't Jamestown), and so much other fascinating stuff. Interspersed are Horowitz's own travels in the present day, which are equally interesting and informative."
— Andrew (5 out of 5 stars)
Awards
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One of the 2008 New York Times Book Review 100 Notable Books for Nonfiction
A Voyage Long and Strange Listener Reviews
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" Everything I have read by Tony Horwitz so far has been extremely enjoyable. This is the book that turned me on to his storytelling abilities. "
— Lori, 1/26/2014 -
" Another fascinating book by Horwitz. He has a great job! Love Myth verses History reflection. "
— Leigh, 1/25/2014 -
" Not as funny as "Confederates in the Attic", but then the author wasn't traveling around the American South visiting with locals either. This book certainly helped fill in some holes in my understanding of U.S. history, and I enjoyed his conclusions at the end regarding why we focus on certain bits of history and ignore others. "
— Karyn, 1/4/2014 -
" Interesting, funny, and insightful. What more could you ask for in a nonfiction book. Horwitz eventually comes to the conclusion that America was founded on myths and that's the way we want it. Facts and details are too difficult to grasp. It's easier for us to cling to a sanitized myths that allow us to create something tangible to associate with a national identity. "
— Lucius, 12/25/2013 -
" A little rambling and travelogue like for my taste. I would have liked more specific detail. "
— Kwsni, 12/3/2013 -
" Basically, good fun and I would go on a road trip with Tony Horwitz in a heartbeat. My working theory is that Tony Horwitz's personality is his greatest strength as a writer - he's a great storyteller and manages to interest you in his own research into various periods of history (this book focuses on the pre-Pilgrim exploration of the Americas). This is quite a feat honestly, as I wouldn't think the research process usually inspires real page-turners. Although his focus here is not comprehensive and purposefully focuses on only about ten particularly interesting explorations of the Americas, Tony weaves all sorts of interesting and little-known stories from that time period - I found myself routinely relating interesting facts and stories to anyone around me as I read this book. "
— Leanna, 11/16/2013 -
" I never knew that the French started a colony in Florida before the Spanish. That's one of many reason this book should be read by anyone who cares about American history. I really like Horowitz's approach to history: entertaining but thoroughly researched, and tied to current events. "
— Artie, 11/15/2013 -
" An NPR recommendation. Loved it! Great history book! "
— Trish, 11/13/2013 -
" Beginning with the Vikings, The author literally takes one through the neglected story of America's founding by the Europeans. I was not only astounded by how little I knew of it's History but by the fact that what I thought I knew (was taught in school) was incorrect. "
— Betty, 10/31/2013 -
" The author focuses on the exploration of the New World apart from the familiar stories of Columbus, Jamestown, and the Mayflower. Readable and informative. "
— David, 10/22/2013 -
" Sure, it gets a little cute at times, but I just like it when journalists put their minds to topics like this. If more history was written this way, we might not forget so much of it in the first place. "
— Joyce, 10/16/2013 -
" I usually really like this sort of thing, and it has very good reviews, but found this one no better than fair to middling. A decent travelogue/popular history, but somewhat less than gripping. "
— Sarah, 3/22/2013 -
" a conversational journey retracing the steps of Europeans and Africans coming to the New World in the 16th century, jokey "
— Patsy, 3/18/2013 -
" This really puts American history of the discovery into perspective and introduced some explorers I never heard of in school. I just wish he would clean up the language! "
— Susanne, 11/9/2012 -
" I found this to be an enjoyable read which drew lots of "I didn't know that" from me. "
— Linda, 9/28/2012 -
" An absolutely fascinating history/travel book about basically what happened between Columbus and the Pilgrims. Funny, informative, insightful ... It's a fast read that resonates. HIGHLY recommended! "
— Rick, 2/17/2012 -
" A great read for any history buff or any North American. The author's narrative style makes a dry subject interesting and his personal account of his attempts to retrace out history is often humorous. "
— Nadine, 1/23/2012 -
" Tony Horwitz has joined a small, select group of my favorite nonfiction writers. These include, most recently: Bryan Sykes (author of Saxons, Vikings, and Celts), Ben MacIntyre (I love all his books), Ryszard Kapuscinski, and the biographer Claire Tomalin. "
— Marianne, 5/13/2011 -
" Hysterical so far. It's very much in the style of Bill Bryson in that Horwitz' accounts of the locals is well-stirred with the historical content. "
— Patrick, 5/4/2011 -
" Great book! I learned a lot about the Europeans coming to America----much more than I learned in school. I always forget about the Spanish exploration of the U.S. "
— Melissa, 4/21/2011 -
" I learned how much propaganda public schools teach us in the name of "history." "
— Jeff, 4/17/2011 -
" I love the structure the author uses in this very interesting and enlightening history of the new world. This is certainly not the columbus story of my grade school days. "
— Michelle, 3/4/2011 -
" What an amazing hundred years! "
— Chris, 2/25/2011 -
" Tony Horwitz is an engaging writer, and this book is no exception. "
— Mary, 2/1/2011
About Tony Horwitz
Tony Horwitz (1958–2019) was the New York Times bestselling author of several books, including Midnight Rising, A Voyage Long and Strange, Blue Latitudes, Confederates in the Attic, and Baghdad Without a Map. He was a Pulitzer Prize-winning journalist who worked for the Wall Street Journal and New Yorker. He had also been a fellow at the Radcliffe Institute for Advanced Study and president of the Society of American Historians.
About John H. Mayer
John H. Mayer, author and Earphones Award–winning narrator, is a character actor whose voice has been heard on numerous commercials, animated programs, audiobooks, and narrations including E! Entertainment’s Celebrity Profiles. He was a five-year member of the Groundlings comedy theater company in Los Angeles. He is also the co-author of Radio Rocket Boy, an award-winning short film.