Foto de l'autor

Robert Wilson (4) (1951–)

Autor/a de Barnum: An American Life

Per altres autors anomenats Robert Wilson, vegeu la pàgina de desambiguació.

44 obres 326 Membres 6 Ressenyes

Sobre l'autor

Robert Wilson is the editor of The American Scholar and a former editor of Preservation. His articles, reviews, and op-eds have appeared in numerous publications, including The Atlantic, Smithsonian, The Washington Post, The Wilson Quarterly, and The Boston Globe. He is the author of The Explorer mostra'n més King and the editor of A Certain Somewhere: Writers on the Places They Remember. He lives in Manassas, Virginia. mostra'n menys

Sèrie

Obres de Robert Wilson

Barnum: An American Life (2019) 114 exemplars

Etiquetat

Coneixement comú

Nom oficial
Wilson, Robert Graham
Data de naixement
1951-02-21
Gènere
male
Nacionalitat
USA

Membres

Ressenyes

"Barnum" was a very detailed and interesting book about the life of the greatest showman on earth. Unfortunately, it was a slog to read because Wilson had to pack in as many details as possible. I found myself skipping over passages here and there. Without those details, however, readers would be left without a full grasp of who Barnum was as man, a friend, a family man, and, above all, a crafty businessman. There was was so much to learn about Barnum and his place in history. Taken in small chunks at a time, you'll enjoy learning about the showman… (més)
½
 
Marcat
daffodilsandpoppies | Hi ha 2 ressenyes més | Apr 1, 2020 |
I doubt there are many people who have never heard of Barnum. Even if nothing else is known about the man, his longest lasting legacy, his circus, would be known. Long before the circus, his touring with nature's oddities, real or not, was his first endeavour. This brought him into the public eye, where many considered him a con man. A mermaid, a woman said to be George Washingtons nurse and 116 years old were his introduction to the public. This book fills in the blanks, how he got from there to becoming in his later life, altruistic and a sponsor of many worthy projects that benefited many.

He was a master at advertising, publicity, knew just how to play the newspapers. Yes, he conned many, but keep in mind they had no tv, so this was amusements that were accepted. He toured with the little general Tom Thumb, and the singer Jenny Kind. He made fortunes, lost fortunes, fire would wild out his house, his businesses, many more than once. He remade himself, time and time again. i truly felt for his wife and children, though there would be heartbreak there as well. He never stopped, going from this to that, even in his seventies.

The author, I felt, showed the good with the bad, letting the reader decide how they felt about this man. Flawed, complicated with many mistakes and start overs, but one has to admire his business acumen. His keeping his pulse on what people wanted to see, which he was more than happy to provide. His cavalier attitude towards animals was off-putting at times, and these were difficult parts, but again the author gave it to us straight. Ultimately, he gave much to his home town, among them a public library, church and hospital. This was a very interesting read.

The narrator was Arthur Morey and I give his narration four stars as well.
… (més)
 
Marcat
Beamis12 | Hi ha 2 ressenyes més | Feb 6, 2020 |
Bio of the great American showman P.T. Barnum. The book was interesting enough and I learned things about him that I was surprised as we only see caricatures of him as something of a huckster.

The real Barnum comes off more as a upstanding type who led an almost charmed life with his successes albeit off of what today we would probably refer to as spin. He certainly made a fortune, lost it, than made it again even bigger. It was never really equated to today's dollars but it might have put him up in the billionaire status.

I was somewhat surprised to see his circus venture came later in life and really his museums and traveling individual shows were most of his life. An interesting man in interesting times.
… (més)
 
Marcat
knightlight777 | Hi ha 2 ressenyes més | Jan 27, 2020 |
An unexceptional (I'm sorry to say) account of Clarence King's career in the American west, focusing mostly on that period of his life and less on his later time as head of the United States Geological Survey and member of the famed Five of Hearts group. The latter period is of somewhat more interest to me, but Wilson's treatment of the earlier period is fine, just lacking any real spark.
½
 
Marcat
JBD1 | Jan 18, 2015 |

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Estadístiques

Obres
44
Membres
326
Popularitat
#72,687
Valoració
½ 3.7
Ressenyes
6
ISBN
468
Llengües
16

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