Lone Star Nation

How a Ragged Army of Courageous Volunteers Won the Battle for Texas Independence

By: H.W. Brands

Narrated by: Don Leslie

From best-selling historian and longtime Texan H. W. Brands, a richly textured history of one of the most fascinating and colorful eras in U.S. history - the Texas Revolution and the forging of a new America.

"For better or for worse, Texas was very much like America. The people ruled, and little could stop them. If they ignored national boundaries, if they trampled the rights of indigenous peoples and of imported bondsmen, if they waged war for motives that started from base self-interest, all this came with the territory of democracy, a realm inhabited by ordinarily imperfect men and women. The one saving grace of democracy - the one that made all the difference in the end - was that sooner or later, sometimes after a terrible strife, democracy corrected its worst mistakes." (Lone Star Nation)

Lone Star Nation is the gripping story of Texas's precarious journey to statehood, from its early colonization in the 1820s to the shocking massacres of Texas loyalists at the Alamo and Goliad by the Mexican army, from its rough-and-tumble years as a land overrun by the Comanches to its day of liberation as an upstart republic.

H. W. Brands tells the turbulent story of Texas through the eyes of a colorful cast of characters who have become a permanent fixture in the American landscape: Stephen Austin, the state's reluctant founder; Sam Houston, the alcoholic former governor who came to lead the Texas army in its hour of crisis and glory; William Travis, James Bowie, and David Crockett, the unforgettable heroic defenders of the doomed Alamo; Santa Anna, the Mexican generalissimo and dictator whose ruthless tactics galvanized the colonists against him; and the white-haired President Andrew Jackson whose expansionist aspirations loomed large in the background.

Beyond these luminaries, Brands unearths the untold stories of the forgotten Texans - the slaves, women, unknown settlers, and children left out of traditional histories - who played crucial roles in Texas’s birth. By turns bloody and heroic, tragic and triumphant, this riveting history of one of our greatest states reads like the most compelling fiction, and further secures H. W. Brands's position as one of the premier American historians.

©2004 H.W. Brands (P)2004 Books on Tape, Inc.

Critic reviews

"It's hard to think that the story could be better told." (Publishers Weekly)
"Brands' impressive integrative account of the fabled Texas revolution of the 1830s relates key incidents and displays trenchant psychological insights, engraving both with the fundamental forces involved....[An] excellent, fair-minded chronicle." (Booklist)
"The author is so conversant with the intricacies of his subject that he assumes a degree of familiarity in the reader....Of the legendary characters who died there, Mr. Brands is notably clear-eyed." (The New York Times)

Texas: America's Crimea

Any additional comments?

Fascinating history and extremely well written. But, in the end, when you think about it, we just took it. History has a way of repeating itself everywhere, and memories are short. So it goes.

ANOTHER Winner

H W Brands is fast becoming one of the best writers of history. He will not lose any fans with this book. Texas has always been a source of rich history and as usual Bill Brands tells the story with flair.

Lone Star Nation

Very informative and entertaining. Reader was more than adequate.

wonderful book

really enjoyed the book. might want to double check some pronunciations though. a must read to understand the passionate nature of Texan!

Great Story and Great Narration

Really great history of Texas made better by a great narrator! Provides a balanced look at Texas history while keeping to a nice story-telling format without being overly academic.

Narrator screws up quotes using bad accent

What’s with the narrator taking the liberty of quoting the foreign characters with what he thinks is the the correct accent?! I cringed and suffered every time he attempted what was a bad Mexican accent when quoting the Mexican generals. Santa Ana sounded like Al Pacino mangling a Spanish accent in the movie Scarface. Narrator screwed up a perfectly well written book with his horrible accents.

Much Respect for H.W. Brands

As a Native Texan, the history of our state has always been near & dear to our hearts. I have learned a great deal about the West from H.W. Brands and Lone Star Nation did not disappoint. With Brands, you can trust that you’ll get just the history, without biases or embellished “tall tales.” Don Leslie was an excellent narrator as well. My reasoning for only 4 stars on the story was that the chapters listed did not have titles nor did it match the audio chapters (just a nuisance, nothing major). I will definitely read more of H.W. Brands books!

God and Texas

As a proud Texan, I can say that this book is written well and has solid research. It's entertaining and educational. A solid home run!!

A Pleasure for a History Buff

As a relatively new resident of Texas, I learned immediately that the people here take their state's history seriously. I consider myself a history buff and have dabbled in Texas History, but I must say that the most comprehensive book I have seen to date is this one. It is not simply filled with arcane facts, but the narrator brings the period to life. An enjoyable read.

Brilliant performance

This is a solid foundation on which to lay additional study of Texas history. The research is deep, the narrative flowing and the performance absolutely brilliant.