THE GUNS OF AUGUST by Barbara Tuchman (UNABRIDGED) was produced by Blackstone Audio and comes with what is perhaps the best audiobook app available (see FEATURES, below).

HONORS: Winner of the Pulitzer Prize for Nonfiction

“FASCINATING… One of the finest works of history [ever] written… A splendid and glittering performance.” (New York Times)

Self-contained, this audiobook app is perfect for your commute, on a trip, or while relaxing. Based on a library-quality recording, the app was built especially for your iPhone and iPod Touch. No unreadable text, no endless scrolling. The audio is of higher-than-normal quality, making for a great listening experience that will not tire ones ears or grate on nerves.

NOTICE: This app includes the same 5-star recording that is available through other online outlets at higher prices. Unabridged and professionally recorded at Blackstone Audio, it is narrated award-winner Nadia May. Not another amateur or volunteer narration, no clicks, background noises, throat clearing, mispronunciations, tinny voices or monotones will be found here.

“TUCHMAN'S MASTERPIECE OF HISTORICAL RECONSTRUCTION HAS BEEN GIVEN A NARRATOR WHO COMPREHENDS IN FULL ITS ENORMOUS NARRATIVE POWER… While Tuchman's large cast of armies and their generals is challenging, Nadia May lessens this difficulty with her mimicry of national accents, as well as her pacing and variations in tone. This unforgettable listening experience is recommended for all lovers of history, audiobooks, and a flat-out great story.” (AudioFile)


• EXPERIENCE. About 19 hours of narration. Created as a Folium enhancedAudio™ edition, this book includes extra functions and features not found on lesser players.

• PLAYER CONTROLS. Includes listen, pause, multi-speed fast forward/reverse, jump ahead/back, chapter skip, volume control, one-touch chapter- and bookmark browser. There is also a “scrub” bar that finds any point inside the chapter with just a tap.

• SLEEP TIMER. Have you ever fallen asleep watching TV or listening to a book? If so, you'll love this feature. Once set, the book will stop, place a bookmark, and allow you to jump back to where you probably began dozing.

• CLEAR & ELEGANT DESIGN. Simple, clean, intuitive, and smarter than average.

• CHAPTER TIMINGS. Always know how much time it will take to finish a chapter. Plus, the progress bar at the top of the screen shows how far into the book you’ve come.

• OFFLINE LISTENING. You are airplane-ready! Once downloaded, listen uninterrupted without threat from a lost network connection. Downloads are usually just 5-10 minutes, but depend upon your network speed.

• AUTO-BOOKMARKING. The player remembers where you stopped listening and returns to that exact spot when you open the book again.


RATING: The subject is war and is thus not appropriate for all audiences.

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In this Pulitzer Prize-winning classic, historian Barbara Tuchman brings to life the people and events that led up to World War I. This was the last gasp of the Gilded Age, of kings and kaisers and czars, of pointed or plumed hats, colored uniforms, and all the pomp and romance that went along with war. How quickly it all changed and how horrible it became.
Tuchman masterfully portrays this transition from the nineteenth to the twentieth century, focusing on the turning point in the year 1914, the month leading up to the war, and the first month of the war. With fine attention to detail, she reveals how and why the war started and why it could have been stopped but wasn’t, managing to make the story utterly suspenseful even when we already know the outcome.