Preview
  • Nothing Like It in the World

  • The Men Who Built the Transcontinental Railroad, 1863 - 1869
  • By: Stephen E. Ambrose
  • Narrated by: Jeffrey DeMunn
  • Length: 7 hrs and 6 mins
  • 4.4 out of 5 stars (80 ratings)

Prime logo Prime members: New to Audible?
Get 2 free audiobooks during trial.
Pick 1 audiobook a month from our unmatched collection.
Listen all you want to thousands of included audiobooks, Originals, and podcasts.
Access exclusive sales and deals.
Premium Plus auto-renews for $14.95/mo after 30 days. Cancel anytime.

Nothing Like It in the World

By: Stephen E. Ambrose
Narrated by: Jeffrey DeMunn
Try for $0.00

$14.95/month after 30 days. Cancel anytime.

Buy for $14.99

Buy for $14.99

Pay using card ending in
By confirming your purchase, you agree to Audible's Conditions of Use and Amazon's Privacy Notice. Taxes where applicable.

Publisher's summary

In this account of an unprecedented feat of engineering, vision, and courage, Stephen E. Ambrose offers an historical successor to his universally acclaimed Undaunted Courage.

Nothing Like It in the World is the story of the men who built the transcontinental railroad. In Ambrose's hands, this enterprise comes to life.

The U.S. government pitted two companies - the Union Pacific and the Central Pacific Railroads - against each other in a race for funding, encouraging speed over caution. At its peak, the work force approached the size of Civil War armies, with as many as 15,000 workers on each line. The surveyors, the men who picked the route, lived off buffalo, deer, and antelope.

In building a railroad, there is only one decisive spot - the end of the track. Nothing like this great work had ever been seen in the world when the last spike, a golden one, was driven in Promontory Peak, Utah, in 1869, as the Central Pacific and the Union Pacific tracks were joined.

Ambrose writes with power and eloquence about the brave men - the famous and the unheralded, ordinary men doing the extraordinary - who accomplished the spectacular feat that made the continent into a nation.

©2000 Stephen E. Ambrose (P)2000 Simon & Schuster
  • Abridged Audiobook
  • Categories: History
activate_Holiday_promo_in_buybox_DT_T2

What listeners say about Nothing Like It in the World

Average customer ratings
Overall
  • 4.5 out of 5 stars
  • 5 Stars
    45
  • 4 Stars
    25
  • 3 Stars
    9
  • 2 Stars
    1
  • 1 Stars
    0
Performance
  • 4.5 out of 5 stars
  • 5 Stars
    37
  • 4 Stars
    25
  • 3 Stars
    6
  • 2 Stars
    1
  • 1 Stars
    0
Story
  • 4.5 out of 5 stars
  • 5 Stars
    44
  • 4 Stars
    14
  • 3 Stars
    8
  • 2 Stars
    1
  • 1 Stars
    0

Reviews - Please select the tabs below to change the source of reviews.

Sort by:
Filter by:
  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    5 out of 5 stars

Interesting read for lovers of the Railroad

Although I felt it was hard to track every detail and I did find the author biased against the I Diana for not including the reason why they behaved the way they did, it was nonetheless fascinating and informative.

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.

You voted on this review!

You reported this review!

1 person found this helpful

  • Overall
    3 out of 5 stars

Nothing like it in the world

Great subject and we learned quite a bit but the names and dates were really hard to follow and I didn't care for the way it was read.

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.

You voted on this review!

You reported this review!

2 people found this helpful

  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    4 out of 5 stars

Fascinating account...with a caveat

Very good narrator, but often cringeworthy, dismissive history-telling with regards to the REST of the people involved. i.e. Natives "thought they were entitled to land", and author's use of "Chinamen" for the Chinese workers.

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.

You voted on this review!

You reported this review!

2 people found this helpful

  • Overall
    4 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    4 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    4 out of 5 stars

New and interesting facts in every chapter

What made the experience of listening to Nothing Like It in the World the most enjoyable?

Lot's of new historical info

What did you like best about this story?

The blending of the actual construction with the backroom stories and determination of the stockholders to keep the project going

Was this a book you wanted to listen to all in one sitting?

No . . . but was a great ride along companion for a man who drives 40k a year

Any additional comments?

Amazed by the tenacity exhibited in building the railroad against all odds

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.

You voted on this review!

You reported this review!

1 person found this helpful