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Gertrude Bell
- Queen of the Desert, Shaper of Nations
- Narrated by: Corrie James
- Length: 18 hrs and 41 mins
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Gertrude Bell
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Publisher's summary
She has been called the female Lawrence of Arabia, which, while not inaccurate, fails to give Gertrude Bell her due. She was at one time the most powerful woman in the British Empire: a nation builder, the driving force behind the creation of modern-day Iraq. Born in 1868 into a world of privilege, Bell turned her back on Victorian society, choosing to read history at Oxford and going on to become an archaeologist, spy, Arabist, linguist, author, poet, photographer, and legendary mountaineer.
She traveled the globe several times, but her passion was the desert, where she traveled with only her guns and her servants. Her vast knowledge of the region made her indispensable to the Cairo Intelligence Office of the British government during World War I. She advised the Viceroy of India; then, as an army major, she traveled to the front lines in Mesopotamia. There, she supported the creation of an autonomous Arab nation for Iraq, promoting and manipulating the election of King Faisal to the throne. Gertrude Bell, vividly told and impeccably researched by Georgina Howell, is a richly compelling portrait of a woman who transcended the restrictions of her class and times.
Critic reviews
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-
Story4.5 out of 5 stars 66
Gertrude Bell was leaning in 100 years before Sheryl Sandberg. One of the great woman adventurers of the 20th century, she turned her back on Victorian society to study at Oxford and travel the world and became the chief architect of British policy in the Middle East after World War I. Mountaineer, archaeologist, Arabist, writer, poet, linguist, and spy, she dedicated her life to championing the Arab cause and was instrumental in drawing the borders that define today's Middle East.
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5 out of 5 stars
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Raw historiography of a spectacular heroine
- By Josef on 01-07-16
By: Gertrude Bell, and others
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Desert Queen
- The Extraordinary Life of Gertrude Bell: Adventurer, Adviser to Kings, Ally of Lawrence of Arabia
- By: Janet Wallach
- Narrated by: Jean Gilpin
- Length: 20 hrs and 11 mins
- Unabridged
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Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 270
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Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 229
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Story4.5 out of 5 stars 233
Turning her back on her privileged life in Victorian England, Gertrude Bell (1868-1926), fired by her innate curiosity, journeyed the world and became fascinated with all things Arab. Traveling the length and breadth of the Arab region, armed with a love for its language and its people, she not only produced several enormously popular books based on her experiences but became instrumental to the British foreign office. When World War I erupted, and the British needed the loyalty of the Arab leaders, it was Gertrude Bell's work and connections that helped provided the brain for T. E. Lawrence's military brawn.
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3 out of 5 stars
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Great beginning, then gets boring
- By Msz on 03-31-16
By: Janet Wallach
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Indian Summer
- The Secret History of the End of an Empire
- By: Alex von Tunzelmann
- Narrated by: Nicola Barber
- Length: 15 hrs and 20 mins
- Unabridged
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Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 200
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Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 168
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Story4.5 out of 5 stars 169
At the stroke of midnight on August 15, 1947, the British Empire withdrew from India, igniting the exhilaration and turmoil of a newly free society. In this vivid, atmospheric popular history, Alex von Tunzelmann chronicles these times through the most prominent figures.
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5 out of 5 stars
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Such an interesting piece of History made easy
- By Diego on 01-23-12
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Those Wild Wyndhams
- Three Sisters at the Heart of Power
- By: Claudia Renton
- Narrated by: Claudia Renton
- Length: 15 hrs and 2 mins
- Unabridged
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Overall4 out of 5 stars 119
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Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 104
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Story4.5 out of 5 stars 104
They were confidantes to British prime ministers, poets, writers, and artists, their lives entwined with the most celebrated and scandalous figures of the day, from Oscar Wilde to Henry James. They were the lovers of great men - or men of great prominence... They lived in a world of luxurious excess, a world of splendor at 44 Belgrave Square and later at the even more vast Clouds, the exquisite Wiltshire house on 4,000 acres, the "house of the age", designed in 1876 by the visionary architect Philip Webb - the model for Henry James' The Spoils of Poynton.
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5 out of 5 stars
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SLOW START BUT STICK WITH THIS ONE
- By The Louligan on 01-22-19
By: Claudia Renton
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Black Diamonds
- The Downfall of an Aristocratic Dynasty and the Fifty Years That Changed England
- By: Catherine Bailey
- Narrated by: Gareth Armstrong
- Length: 15 hrs and 14 mins
- Unabridged
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Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 67
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Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 61
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Story4.5 out of 5 stars 62
When the sixth Earl Fitzwilliam died in 1902, he left behind the second largest estate in 20th-century England, valued at more than three billion dollars in today's money - a lifeline to the tens of thousands of people who worked either in the family's coal mines or on their expansive estate. The earl also left behind four sons, and the family line seemed assured. But was it?
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3 out of 5 stars
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Could use a good editor...
- By Phyllis on 04-30-18
By: Catherine Bailey
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Victoria & Abdul (Movie Tie-in)
- The True Story of the Queen's Closest Confidant
- By: Shrabani Basu
- Narrated by: Elizabeth Jasicki
- Length: 11 hrs and 9 mins
- Unabridged
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Overall4 out of 5 stars 130
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Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 111
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Story4 out of 5 stars 111
History’s most unlikely friendship - this is the astonishing story of Queen Victoria and her dearest companion, the young Indian Munshi Abdul Karim. In the twilight years of her reign, after the devastating deaths of her two great loves - Prince Albert and John Brown - Queen Victoria meets tall and handsome Abdul Karim, a humble servant from Agra waiting tables at her Golden Jubilee. The two form an unlikely bond and within a year Abdul becomes a powerful figure at court, the Queen’s teacher, her counsel on Urdu and Indian affairs, and a friend close to her heart.
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3 out of 5 stars
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Honestly, can’t finish yet.
- By Cassie on 12-30-17
By: Shrabani Basu
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Travelers in the Third Reich
- The Rise of Fascism: 1919-1945
- By: Julia Boyd
- Narrated by: Christa Lewis
- Length: 13 hrs and 46 mins
- Unabridged
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Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 80
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Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 72
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Story4.5 out of 5 stars 72
Travelers in the Third Reich is an extraordinary history of the rise of the Nazis based on fascinating firsthand accounts, drawing together a multitude of voices and stories, including politicians, musicians, diplomats, schoolchildren, communists, scholars, athletes, poets, fascists, artists, tourists, and even celebrities like Charles Lindbergh and Samuel Beckett. Their experiences create a remarkable three-dimensional picture of Germany under Hitler - one so palpable that the listener will feel, hear, even breathe the atmosphere.
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5 out of 5 stars
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Why must I write a review to have my rating count?
- By Saint Exupery on 03-04-23
By: Julia Boyd
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Matriarch
- Queen Mary and the House of Windsor
- By: Anne Edwards
- Narrated by: Corrie James
- Length: 16 hrs and 36 mins
- Unabridged
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Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 2,331
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Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 2,087
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Story4.5 out of 5 stars 2,084
The life of Princess May of Teck is one of the great Cinderella stories in history. From a family of impoverished nobility, she was chosen by Queen Victoria as the bride for her eldest grandson, the scandalous Duke of Clarence, heir to the throne, who died mysteriously before their marriage. Despite this setback, she became queen, mother of two kings, grandmother of the current queen, and a lasting symbol of the majesty of the British throne.
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5 out of 5 stars
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Wow! Did not want this to end!
- By Susan Nall Sheehan on 07-16-17
By: Anne Edwards
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Lady Almina and the Real Downton Abbey
- The Lost Legacy of Highclere Castle
- By: The Countess of Carnarvon
- Narrated by: Wanda McCaddon
- Length: 7 hrs and 28 mins
- Unabridged
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Overall4 out of 5 stars 786
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Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 699
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Story4 out of 5 stars 693
Lady Almina and the Real Downton Abbey tells the story behind Highclere Castle, the real-life inspiration and setting for Julian Fellowes's Emmy Award-winning PBS series, and the life of one of its most famous inhabitants: Lady Almina, the fifth Countess of Carnarvon. Drawing on a rich store of materials from the archives of Highclere Castle, including diaries, letters, and photographs, the current Lady Carnarvon has written a transporting story of this fabled home on the brink of war.
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4 out of 5 stars
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the lowdown on Downton times
- By connie on 03-17-12
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The Glitter and the Gold
- The American Duchess - In Her Own Words
- By: Consuelo Vanderbilt Balsan
- Narrated by: Coleen Marlo
- Length: 9 hrs and 44 mins
- Unabridged
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Overall4 out of 5 stars 153
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Performance3.5 out of 5 stars 136
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Story4 out of 5 stars 137
Consuelo Vanderbilt was young, beautiful and the heir to a vast family fortune. She was also deeply in love with an American suitor when her mother chose instead for her to fulfill her social ambitions and marry an English Duke. Leaving her life in America, she came to England as the Duchess of Marlborough in 1895 and took up residence in her new home: Blenheim Palace. The ninth Duchess gives unique first-hand insight into life at the very pinnacle of English society in the Edwardian era.
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2 out of 5 stars
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Facinating Story- Terrible reading
- By Ashley D on 03-27-14
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The Churchills: In Love and War
- By: Mary S. Lovell
- Narrated by: Anne Flosnik
- Length: 21 hrs and 40 mins
- Unabridged
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Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 59
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Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 48
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Story4.5 out of 5 stars 46
The first Duke of Marlborough (1650-1722) was a soldier of such genius that a lavish palace, Blenheim, was built to honor his triumphs. Succeeding generations of Churchills sometimes achieved distinction but also included profligates and womanizers, and were saddled with the ruinous upkeep of Blenheim. The Churchills were an extraordinary family: ambitious, impecunious, impulsive, brave, and arrogant. Winston - recently voted "The Greatest Briton" - dominates them all. His failures and triumphs are revealed in the context of a poignant and sometimes tragic private life.
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5 out of 5 stars
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Grand! In it's own wonderful way.
- By Cookie on 12-05-11
By: Mary S. Lovell
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Hero: The Life and Legend of Lawrence of Arabia
- By: Michael Korda
- Narrated by: Robin Sachs
- Length: 14 hrs and 10 mins
- Abridged
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Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 419
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Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 323
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Story4.5 out of 5 stars 324
Michael Korda's Hero is the story of an epic life on a grand scale: a revealing, in-depth, and gripping biography of the extraordinary, mysterious, and dynamic Englishman whose daring exploits and romantic profile, including his blond, sun-burnished good looks and flowing white robes, made him an object of intense fascination, still famous the world over as "Lawrence of Arabia".
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4 out of 5 stars
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Excellent book and narration
- By Ron L. Caldwell on 12-11-10
By: Michael Korda
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Louisa
- The Extraordinary Life of Mrs. Adams
- By: Louisa Thomas
- Narrated by: Kirsten Potter
- Length: 15 hrs and 42 mins
- Unabridged
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Overall4 out of 5 stars 98
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Performance4 out of 5 stars 81
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Story4 out of 5 stars 84
Born in London to an American father and a British mother on the eve of the Revolutionary War, Louisa Catherine Johnson was raised in circumstances very different from the New England upbringing of future president John Quincy Adams, whose life had been dedicated to public service from the earliest age. And yet John Quincy fell in love with her almost despite himself. Their often tempestuous but deeply close marriage lasted half a century.
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4 out of 5 stars
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Insightful
- By Jean on 05-18-16
By: Louisa Thomas
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Royal Sisters
- Queen Elizabeth II and Princess Margaret
- By: Anne Edwards
- Narrated by: Corrie James
- Length: 12 hrs and 29 mins
- Unabridged
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Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 143
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Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 124
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Story4.5 out of 5 stars 124
In Royal Sisters, Anne Edwards, author of the best-selling Vivien Leigh: A Biography and Matriarch: Queen Mary and the House of Windsor, has written the first dual biography of Elizabeth, the princess who was to become Queen, and her younger sister, Margaret, who was to be her subject. From birth to maturity, they were the stuff of which dreams are made.
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4 out of 5 stars
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Where's The Rest?
- By Simone on 12-19-17
By: Anne Edwards
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Lady Catherine, the Earl, and the Real Downton Abbey
- By: The Countess of Carnarvon
- Narrated by: Wanda McCaddon
- Length: 10 hrs and 21 mins
- Unabridged
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Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 170
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Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 155
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Story4.5 out of 5 stars 158
Lady Catherine, the Earl, and the Real Downton Abbey tells the story behind Highclere Castle, the setting for Julian Fellowes’s Emmy Award-winning PBS show Downton Abbey, and the life of one of its most famous inhabitants, Catherine Wendell.
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1 out of 5 stars
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Not what was advertised
- By Jessica C Anderson on 09-10-19
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Clementine
- The Life of Mrs. Winston Churchill
- By: Sonia Purnell
- Narrated by: Susan Lyons
- Length: 17 hrs and 33 mins
- Unabridged
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Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 1,438
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Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 1,284
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Story4.5 out of 5 stars 1,269
By Winston Churchill's own admission, victory in the Second World War would have been "impossible without her". Until now, however, the only existing biography of Churchill's wife, Clementine, was written by her daughter. Sonia Purnell finally gives Clementine her due with a deeply researched account that tells her life story, revealing how she was instrumental in softening FDR's initial dislike of her husband and paving the way for Britain's close relationship with America.
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4 out of 5 stars
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Exasperating At Times But Very Good--
- By Gillian on 04-09-18
By: Sonia Purnell
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The Last Lion: Winston Spencer Churchill, Volume I: Visions of Glory 1874-1932
- By: William Manchester
- Narrated by: Frederick Davidson
- Length: 41 hrs and 19 mins
- Unabridged
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Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 2,637
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Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 2,137
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Story5 out of 5 stars 2,131
Winston Churchill is perhaps the most important political figure of the 20th century. His great oratory and leadership during the Second World War were only part of his huge breadth of experience and achievement. Studying his life is a fascinating way to imbibe the history of his era and gain insight into key events that have shaped our time.
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5 out of 5 stars
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Superb - Review of Both Volume I & Volume II
- By Wolfpacker on 01-23-09
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The Romanov Sisters
- The Lost Lives of the Daughters of Nicholas and Alexandra
- By: Helen Rappaport
- Narrated by: Xe Sands
- Length: 13 hrs and 25 mins
- Unabridged
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Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 877
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Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 777
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Story4.5 out of 5 stars 779
They were the Princess Dianas of their day—perhaps the most photographed and talked about young royals of the early twentieth century. The four captivating Russian Grand Duchesses—Olga, Tatiana, Maria and Anastasia Romanov—were much admired for their happy dispositions, their looks, the clothes they wore and their privileged lifestyle. Over the years, the story of the four Romanov sisters and their tragic end in a basement at Ekaterinburg in 1918 has clouded our view of them, leading to a mass of sentimental and idealized hagiography.
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4 out of 5 stars
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Made you want to change the ending
- By MissSusie66 on 01-23-15
By: Helen Rappaport
What listeners say about Gertrude Bell
Average customer ratingsReviews - Please select the tabs below to change the source of reviews.
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Overall5 out of 5 stars
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Performance5 out of 5 stars
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Story5 out of 5 stars
- Amazon Customer
- 02-15-18
amazing woman, history, detail, writing narrator
amazing woman history writing detail narrator everything 8 7 65 4 3 2 words remaining
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2 people found this helpful
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Overall5 out of 5 stars
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Performance5 out of 5 stars
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Story5 out of 5 stars
- Pamela D. Smith
- 08-17-19
Highly recommended!
Amazing story beautifully written and wonderfully narrated by Corrie James. It opened my eyes to history of the current Middle Eastern situation and unfolded an unimaginably fascinating character in the form of Gertrude bell, whom I had never heard of before. Pass this on to any friend , man or woman, and the will find it utterly engaging.
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4 people found this helpful
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Overall5 out of 5 stars
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Performance5 out of 5 stars
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Story5 out of 5 stars
- Rhetta Drennan
- 12-03-20
Great biography of a great person
I loved the use Gertrude's letters and writings, as well as the letters and writings of her contemporaries. Such an amazing life and individual!!
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Overall5 out of 5 stars
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Performance5 out of 5 stars
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Story5 out of 5 stars
- Anonymous User
- 04-20-19
Gertrude Bell
Loved it !! looking forward to reading more books on Gertrude Bell such a fascinating woman
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2 people found this helpful
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Overall5 out of 5 stars
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Performance5 out of 5 stars
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Story5 out of 5 stars
- Nostromo
- 08-05-18
Shattering The Glass Ceiling in Britain
This was an extremely well written book about a very remarkable woman who was very much ahead of her time. Born into family that made its money from manufacturing during the latter half of the British industrial revolution, Gertrude Bell refused to follow the script of a typical Victorian woman. Not only did she attend university but she graduated Oxford with honors and went to a career as an explorer and statesman(woman) during World War I and the subsequent development of the Middle East. In essence, she should be considered as one of the founding mothers of the modern Iraq as she worked with the British to create that state out of Mesopotamia and other adjacent portions of the old Ottoman empire. She was the rare woman at that time who succeeded by charisma, smarts and persistence to carve out a career for herself in a male dominated world. Her success came at a significant cost- she never married and although she was interested in two different men, neither led her to a successful domestic life (one man committed suicide while the other died at the Battle of Gallipoli during Word War One). The books is very well written and narrated. I would recommend it to anyone who is interested in the development of the modern Middle East as well as the story of a remarkable woman whose accomplishments were never as well recognized as they should have been. PS- if you have seen the movie "Dessert Queen" with Nicole Kidman, do not believe that the movie in any way mirrors the book. The book is much better.
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7 people found this helpful
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Overall5 out of 5 stars
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Performance5 out of 5 stars
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Story5 out of 5 stars
- Tinkertown
- 06-22-18
History comes alive
An amazing biography of a remarkable woman. Breathtaking in her capacity for life. History comes alive as we see how little we have learned from the past in the Middle East!
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3 people found this helpful
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Overall5 out of 5 stars
- Kindle Customer
- 05-09-19
Politically fascinating picture of today's conflicts.
The breaking up of the Ottoman empire and the Britains commonwealth dissolving the British held lands in the middle East are a vivid tapestry in Gertrude Bell 's life. She was an amazing woman to have worked and traveled through the Middle East in the Victorian era. The lands were divided, laws were written for governing the new countries of Iran and Iraq based on the recommendations of Gertrude Bell .
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3 people found this helpful
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Overall5 out of 5 stars
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Performance5 out of 5 stars
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Story5 out of 5 stars
- Karyn Myers
- 06-15-22
Amazing women!
Gertrude Bell was an amazing women. I wish her life’s story was better known. This book was a wonderful exploration of an amazing life.
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Overall1 out of 5 stars
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Performance3 out of 5 stars
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Story1 out of 5 stars
- Jill Nieglos
- 07-14-22
Couldn't wait for it to finish...
I hated this book. I would have enjoyed it as a historical novel if it was written well as a historical novel, but this focuses on such drivel. I had to read this for a book club. Don't waste your time. Watch the movie with Nicole Kidman and you will understand that she was an incredible person, perhaps the most interesting besides Elizabeth 1.
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