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David Crockett

The Lion of the West

Audiobook
1 of 1 copy available
1 of 1 copy available
His name was David Crockett. He never signed his name any other way, but popular culture transformed his memory into "Davy Crockett," and Hollywood gave him a raccoon hat he hardly ever wore. Bestselling historian Michael Wallis casts a fresh look at the frontiersman, storyteller, and politician behind these legendary stories.


Born into a humble Tennessee family in 1786, Crockett never "killed him a b'ar" when he was only three. But he did cut a huge swath across early-nineteenth-century America—as a bear hunter, a frontier explorer, a soldier serving under Andrew Jackson, an unlikely congressman, and, finally, a martyr in his now-controversial death at the Alamo. Wallis's David Crockett is more than a riveting story. It is a revelatory, authoritative biography that separates fact from fiction, providing us with an extraordinary evocation of a true American hero and the rough-and-tumble times in which he lived.
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    • AudioFile Magazine
      David Crockett didn't become a legend while hunting in Tennessee. Politics and a stint in Congress made him the stuff of plays and books. Author Michael Wallis profiles Crockett and studies the creation of his myth. John Pruden gives Wallis's book a soft-spoken reading, with just a touch of amazement. He finds a suitably folksy voice for Crockett's own words, which come from the legend's autobiography and other sources. Book tours and stump speeches may not be as exciting as hunting bear, but they do show how reality gave way to legend in America's early years. Pruden makes this look at American politics and culture an entertaining listen. J.A.S. (c) AudioFile 2011, Portland, Maine
    • Publisher's Weekly

      March 21, 2011
      Now known as a Disney coonskin-capped country caricature, David Crockett created a lasting persona built on his survival skills, embodiment of manifest destiny, and captivating storytelling, says Wallis. Offering only perfunctory coverage of Crockett's popularly imagined martyrdom at the battle of the Alamo, Wallis (Billy the Kid) sifts through his subject's substantial failures as a wilderness family man (troubled by debt, drink, and often abandoning his family) and business entrepreneur while also detailing overlooked professional successes such as his election to the U.S. and Tennessee legislatures. While Wallis illustrates the formally uneducated frontiersman's remarkable adaptability, Crockett's physical bravery against bears and moral courage in opposing aggressive mistreatment of Native Americans shine through as the defeated legislator finally suggested to his fellow Tennesseans that they "go to hell" while he happily left for Texas. Wallis's well-documented take on the famous pop culture hero reads like fiction, enhanced by flowing prose in portraying a flawed but fascinating frontiersman who faithfully carried a treasured rifle named after his estranged wife, Betsey. 60 illus.

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  • OverDrive Listen audiobook

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  • English

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