Audiobook10 hours
Saint Patrick's Battalion: A Novel
Written by James Alexander Thom
Narrated by William Dufris
Rating: 4 out of 5 stars
4/5
()
About this audiobook
A stirring fictional account of the amazing real-life story of John Riley, an Irishman who led his men to desert the American military during the Mexican-American War, as seen through the eyes of two memorable narrators.
It is June 1845, and Paddy Quinn is a camp boy for the American army-which, by order of President Polk, is bound for Mexico. A young man with journalistic aspirations, Paddy writes letters for illiterate soldiers and learns that, like him, many are Irish, including the enigmatic John Riley. Riley rattles camp hierarchy when he rails against the brutal treatment of Irish soldiers, but he soon goes further, sneaking away at night to switch sides. Riley is not alone. Fed up with mistreatment and drawn by a Catholic bond, Irish, German, and other soldiers join Mexico. Led by Riley, a corps of Irishman called the San Patricios-in English, St. Patrick's Battalion-fights for the enemy in the war's major campaigns. But when they are captured, their resolve is tested in the extreme-as are Paddy's loyalties, to his country and to the man he most admires.
Alternating between Paddy's account and that of Augustin Juvero, a Mexican soldier, nationally bestselling author James Alexander Thom constructs an enlightening novel about war, duty, and loyalty, and draws intriguing parallels to our current conflict in Iraq in his most powerful and relevant novel since Follow the River.
It is June 1845, and Paddy Quinn is a camp boy for the American army-which, by order of President Polk, is bound for Mexico. A young man with journalistic aspirations, Paddy writes letters for illiterate soldiers and learns that, like him, many are Irish, including the enigmatic John Riley. Riley rattles camp hierarchy when he rails against the brutal treatment of Irish soldiers, but he soon goes further, sneaking away at night to switch sides. Riley is not alone. Fed up with mistreatment and drawn by a Catholic bond, Irish, German, and other soldiers join Mexico. Led by Riley, a corps of Irishman called the San Patricios-in English, St. Patrick's Battalion-fights for the enemy in the war's major campaigns. But when they are captured, their resolve is tested in the extreme-as are Paddy's loyalties, to his country and to the man he most admires.
Alternating between Paddy's account and that of Augustin Juvero, a Mexican soldier, nationally bestselling author James Alexander Thom constructs an enlightening novel about war, duty, and loyalty, and draws intriguing parallels to our current conflict in Iraq in his most powerful and relevant novel since Follow the River.
Related to Saint Patrick's Battalion
Related audiobooks
Look Homeward, Angel Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5A Traveller in War-Time Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsA Place Called Freedom Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Follow the River Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Charleston Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Savannah {or} a Gift for Mr. Lincoln Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Gettysburg: A Novel of the Civil War Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5The Man Who Could Be King: A Novel Rating: 3 out of 5 stars3/5The Sea Wolf Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Gone to Soldiers Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Trinity Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Ride The Wind: The Story of Cynthia Ann Parker and Last Days of the Comanche Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Kings of the Earth Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5The Great Shame: And the Triumph of the Irish in the English-Speaking World Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5Moon and Sixpence (version 2) Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5To Die in Spring: A Novel Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Threads West: An American Saga Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5The Trees Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5This Side of Paradise Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsThis Rock Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5An Unfinished Life Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Jubilee Trail Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Darkness at Chancellorsville: A Novel of Stonewall Jackson's Triumph and Tragedy Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsForever Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Last Train From Cuernavaca Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5The Last Crossing Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5The Last of the Mohicans Rating: 3 out of 5 stars3/5The Return of Little Big Man Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Remember Ben Clayton Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5
War & Military Fiction For You
The Huntress: A Novel Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5The Alice Network: A Novel Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5The Rose Code: A Novel Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5Unfinished Tales Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5For Whom the Bell Tolls Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5The Diamond Eye: A Novel Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5The Book of Lost Names Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5Long Walk to Water: Based on a True Story Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5All Quiet on the Western Front Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5When I Come Home Again: 'A page-turning literary gem' THE TIMES, BEST BOOKS OF 2020 Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5The Forest of Vanishing Stars: A Novel Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5The Librarian of Burned Books: A Novel Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5A Farewell to Arms Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5The Winemaker's Wife Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5The Paris Daughter Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5The Mountains Sing Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5A Leaf on the Wind of All Hallows Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5A Thousand Splendid Suns: A Novel Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5The Room on Rue Amélie Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5Escape from Baghdad! Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5The Mongoliad: Book One Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5The Naked and the Dead Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Dead Man's Hand: A Pike Logan Novel Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5The Archipelago of Another Life Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Ribbons of Scarlet: A Novel of the French Revolution's Women Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5The Militia House: A Novel Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Minor Detail Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5At Night All Blood Is Black: A Novel Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5The Beantown Girls Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Johnny Got His Gun Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5
Related categories
Reviews for Saint Patrick's Battalion
Rating: 4 out of 5 stars
4/5
6 ratings1 review
- Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5good history (historical) of the 1846 Mexican/American War