Kathryn Bashaar's Reviews > 1776

Al and I listened to the audio book version of this on our way to Florida. I had read the hard copy version several years ago when it came out, but had forgotten a lot. Some of the battle descriptions were tedious for me (but those were Al's favorite parts, of course!). But I enjoyed McCullough's descriptions of the characters in this history of the pivotal year of American independence. I especially loved hearing of Washington's travails as commander of the Continental Army. It was heartening to be reminded that Washington experienced many of the same challenges that I face as a manager in the business world: such as having to make decisions even when others question your judgement and, deep inside, you often question your own judgement. But the stakes were so much higher for him! I loved Henry Knox, too, how determined he was in the face of every obstacle; there's a management lesson there, too. This, in my mind is McCullough's great strength as a historian: his ability to make history read like a novel, by bringing the players vividly to life.