The Path Between the Seas cover art

The Path Between the Seas

The Creation of the Panama Canal, 1870-1914

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The Path Between the Seas

Written by: David McCullough
Narrated by: Nelson Runger
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About this listen

Winner of the National Book Award for history, The Path Between the Seas tells the story of the men and women who fought against all odds to fulfill the 400-year-old dream of constructing an aquatic passageway between the Atlantic and Pacific oceans. It is a story of astonishing engineering feats, tremendous medical accomplishments, political power plays, heroic successes, and tragic failures. McCullough expertly weaves the many strands of this momentous event into a captivating tale.

Like his masterful, Pulitzer Prize-winning biography John Adams, David McCullough's The Path Between the Seas has the sweep and vitality of a great novel. This audiobook is a must-listen for anyone interested in American history, international intrigue, and human drama.

©2001 David McCullough (P)2011 Simon & Schuster
20th Century Central America Engineering United States World Imperialism American History
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What the critics say

  • National Book Award, History, 1978

"A chunk of history full of giant-sized characters and rich in political skullduggery." ( Newsweek)

What listeners say about The Path Between the Seas

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  • Overall
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Loved it

Absolutely love the detail. Almost wish there was a part 2 that covered post construction (until today) with the same thoroughness.

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  • Overall
    4 out of 5 stars
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    4 out of 5 stars
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GOOD HISTORY

A marvelous description of the creation of a great engineering achievement. A bit dry and detailed when it came to the technical narration of the structural side of the canal, but then this was part of the mission of the entire story. But the technical overkill was compensated by the other details of how and why the French had started it and failed, and true to the American spirits, how the Americans came to complete it.

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  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
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    5 out of 5 stars

Brilliant. Best audiobook purchase so far.

Can't say enough good things about this audiobook. Interesting true story that has all the elements of great fiction, plus excellent narration, production, etc., plus it's well-written, edited and organized . . . everything you want in a book!

Well, almost everything. I wish it had come with a PDF, (it didn't, in Canada) but the audiobook was so fascinating and I enjoyed it so much I decided to buy the Kindle version (I wanted to see how some names and places were spelled.)

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    5 out of 5 stars
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Outstanding

This book is wonderfully written and narrated. It's a terrific description of the history, politics, personalities and construction of the canal.

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    5 out of 5 stars
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As always, EXCELLENT!

You will not regret this purchase.

Great narration and wow, what a story! The great American historian McCullough is at the top of his craft in this remarkable story of doing the almost impossible, and doing it well.

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  • Overall
    3 out of 5 stars
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    2 out of 5 stars

Long winded

Too much into little details that lead it to be boring at times. Some information was good, but others were not worth my time

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    2 out of 5 stars
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Dry

I found it to dry, to many dates and names. Doesn't keep our interest going.

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