Personal Memoirs of Ulysses S. Grant

By: Ulysses S. Grant

Narrated by: Alastair Cameron

Length: 29 hrs and 23 mins

Publisher's summary

Written from his death bed, The Personal Memoirs of Ulysses S. Grant are written by the most well known Civil War General himself, Ulysses S. Grant. In a review of his life as a private citizen, as well as a general, Grant lets the listener know what a heroic figure he really was.

Like so many men before him, Grant describes being pressured into a certain way of life by his father. He never aspired for a military career, but his father insisted on West Point Academy for his schooling. Grant takes us through the Mexican-American War, his short retirement after the war, and his involvement in the Civil War. He points out specific historical figures that directly lead to successes and failures in his military career.

Grant also immerses the listener in battle scenes that leave you visualizing an old western movie. His depiction of the war leaves an impression as he goes into deep details about the little parts of daily life in the military, like the food, supplies, and ammunition wagons that delivered their goods to them. Grant gives intellectual commentary on why he believes the Civil War happened, why the South was doomed from the beginning, and surprisingly, how they were all the better for it in the end.

©2016 A.R.N. Publications (P)2016 A.R.N. Publications

British Pronunciation of Proper Nouns in America

Would you listen to Personal Memoirs of Ulysses S. Grant again? Why?

I am not certain, the book is very linear and fact based. On one hand it is apparent that Grant was not talented with rhetoric. On the other hand the book presents a wealth of knowledge and a prospective I wouldn't otherwise be exposed to.

What do you think the narrator could have done better?

The narrator did an excellent job of elocution, and pronounced the names of many places phonetically correctly. However, in American English the spoken names of many places vary from the phonetically correct. American English is my primary language and I found this 'correct pronunciation' incredibly distracting and quite grating to hear the names like the Army of the Potomac, Maryland, and many other places pronounced in an atypical way. I don't begrudge the narrator, but I am spending a large percentage of this book thinking that's not the way we say that in America, as instead of to listening to content of the book.

Narrator's voice

Narrator sounds like a computer. He's awful. No intonation--just drones on and on. I'm switching to the other version of this audio book that's available on audible.com with a different narrator. I hope he's better. I could not take more than four chapters of this guy.

The actual book, written by US Grant is very interesting.

Edit: The other narrator, Robin Field, was great.

Reader with an English accent?

Who would you have cast as narrator instead of Alastair Cameron?

Someone with an American accent. Hadn't realized I was downloading this version, read by a man who does not know how to pronounce U.S. cities, including the city where Grant lived before the war.

Great source of information on the Civil War

The story was great but the performance was almost unbearable. Needs to be redone. Far too many mistakes in pronunciation.

Very bad editing!

Words, such as Appomattox, Shiloh and Beauregard, were consistently mispronounced throughout the book! EXTREMELY irritating to this American citizen seeking to respect Grant's name by listening to his memoirs.

Maybe a narrator that can actually pronounce the names of places and people next time?

I find it very hard to believe that no one in the process of recording this book knew enough about the subject to correct the mispronunciations of Mr. Cameron. His British accent aside, places like Appomattox are such a part of this history that it was excruciating to hear him incorrectly pronounce it each time. General Beauregard’s likewise is not some obscure name that should stump anyone. Potomac is another example and they are everywhere throughout the book.

Why did no one stop and correct these among many other glaring errors? Very sad to be so ignorant of a subject and still be a producer or director as well.

Good story, terrible orator

The oratory was terrible. A nasally European should not have been chosen to read this book. Several times I wanted to turn it off because I could not stand to listen to the monotone reading. chose another audio version of this book because this narrator of this version could put you to sleep.

Excellent book, well worth your time to read

the story line was incredible however, the narrator was difficult to listen to as it sounded like he was talking through his nose. Aside from that however, this is an outstanding book.

It is long and tedious but intriguing

As any historical recount, it requires attention to listen to the bombardment of facts, but if you’re already studied in the Civil War battles, you will not be lost.

Wrong Narrator

Would you consider the audio edition of Personal Memoirs of Ulysses S. Grant to be better than the print version?

No

What did you like best about this story?

The details and behind the scenes observations.

How could the performance have been better?

If the narrator had researched the proper pronounciations for the places, it would have been a more pleasurable listen. Errors: Shiloh - Shelo, P.T.G. Beaureguard - Booregard, Appamatox - Appotamax..

Did you have an extreme reaction to this book? Did it make you laugh or cry?

Thought provoking.