Rated 5 out of 5 by griffinsdad from High Point for American History This was something like my 105th Great Course and it's certainly one of the top five that I liked the most. Like one reviewer, I'm sorry it had to come to an end - I was devouring 6 classes a day and still looking forward to the next. Professor O'Donnell is incredibly organized and entertaining and in 24 hours of speaking, there wasn't a single word I didn't understand. I can't imagine the effort he must have made to make the course clear and enjoyable and even exciting. And this, despite the fact I've already viewed a couple of American History Great Courses. Need to see if he's made done other Great Courses. As with another favorite, Robert Bucholz, I'd get it no matter what the subject.
Date published: 2024-05-12
Rated 5 out of 5 by aposton1952 from ONE REGRET!!! I bought this course of 48 lectures and I have only one regret. I completed the last three lectures today and now I am finished with the course. My regret is that there were only 48 lectures. Could we persuade Great Courses to create a part two to this series of lectures? I have completed 88 Great Courses (Well, many were not so great.) over the past 38 months. I highly recommend this course and this professor of history. My forty-two years as a public school history teacher and administrator justifies this opinion!
Date published: 2024-03-04
Rated 5 out of 5 by AY123 from Truly Great Course Each lecture covers an interesting topic and the professor is easy to listen to.
Date published: 2024-03-02
Rated 5 out of 5 by ChiMagLearner from Facts With Context Back in "the day" my history classes consisted mostly of facts to be memorized and regurgitated. With some imagination, perhaps I would have, or should have realized the study of history involves much more, but my attention focused on other academic pursuits at the time. After watching and paying attention to this course, I am a history enthusiast. It makes perfect that major events, or turning points, occur as much by chance as purpose, or that a purposeful event evolved from a chance occurrence of a previous event. Regardless of whether you are currently a history buff, I think Professor O'Donnell's presentations helped me place many events in my 70+ years lifetime (70+) in a new perspective, whether they occurred recently or years ago. The material applies not only to history but to human behavior in general. Highly recommend for all ages!
Date published: 2024-03-01
Rated 5 out of 5 by kalb from time well spent truly educational & informative. Some interesting & difficult choices. I might disagree with some choices (& some omitted possibilities), but all are well done & thought provoking. The only true criticism i have is the Prof is only a good presenter - at times his delivery leaves something to be desired - but it's a minor issue.
Date published: 2023-10-17
Rated 5 out of 5 by Jo Ann S from Excellent lecture format; thought-provoking events A long series of lectures, but each one takes a story and expands to cover events leading up to, and then following on from, the anchor story. There's always an outline of topics to be covered and the lecturer communicates his enthusiasm for the content. Organized, energetic and informative - excellent combination.Each lecture is mostly self-contained, but I think it works to watch them in order (which is chronological) because there are times when one topic builds on a previous one - a couple of transportation revolutions and communications revolutions, for example.Strongly recommend this to anyone interested in US history - or even someone numbed by the dates-of-wars version of history who wants to hear what a lively and fascinating story is really there.
Date published: 2023-08-06
Rated 5 out of 5 by Jerome P from excellent course Thank you very much for sharing your knowledge, and presenting it in such a unique way. It was very very interesting.
Date published: 2023-07-24
Rated 5 out of 5 by cpr_norcal from Extremely Thought Provoking Both myself and my mother, a 94 y.o. retired History teacher, found this course to be one of the most interesting and thought-provoking lecture series in either of our experiences.
Date published: 2023-05-18
