
Strong Voices
Fifteen American Speeches Worth Knowing
Failed to add items
Add to Cart failed.
Add to Wish List failed.
Remove from wishlist failed.
Adding to library failed
Follow podcast failed
Unfollow podcast failed
$0.99/mo for the first 3 months

Buy for $14.39
No default payment method selected.
We are sorry. We are not allowed to sell this product with the selected payment method
-
Narrated by:
-
Prentice Onayemi
-
Lisa Renee Pitts
About this listen
"A wide-ranging collection of speeches and a worthwhile resource for students of American history." (Booklist)
"A golden celebration of the multicultural voices who demand the U.S. - and the world - do better." (Kirkus)
"An important addition to American history collections." (School Library Journal)
Strong Voices: Fifteen American Speeches Worth Knowing is a collection of significant speeches, made both by those who held the reins of power and those who didn’t, at significant times in American history. Listen to the original words - sometimes abridged and sometimes in their entirety - that have shaped our cultural fabric.
Introductions by acclaimed writer Tonya Bolden provide historical context and critical insights to the meaning and impact of every speech. Illustrations by award-winning artist Eric Velasquez illuminate what it was really like at each moment in history. This collection includes the following:
Patrick Henry, "Give Me Liberty or Give Me Death"
George Washington, Farewell Address
Red Jacket, "We Never Quarrel about Religion"
Frederick Douglass, "What to the Slave Is the Fourth of July?"
Sojourner Truth, "I Am a Woman’s Rights"
Abraham Lincoln, Gettysburg Address
Theodore Roosevelt, "Citizenship in a Republic"
Franklin Delano Roosevelt, "The Only Thing We Have to Fear Is Fear Itself"
Lou Gehrig, "Farewell to Baseball"
Langston Hughes, "On the Blacklist All Our Lives"
John Fitzgerald Kennedy, "We Choose to Go to the Moon"
Martin Luther King, Jr., "I Have a Dream"
Fannie Lou Hamer, "I Question America"
Cesar Chavez, Address to the Commonwealth Club of California, 1984
Hillary Rodham Clinton, "Women’s Rights Are Human Rights"
Strong Voices includes a foreword by number one New York Times best-selling author and celebrated journalist Cokie Roberts, as well as a timeline in the back of the audiobook, along with letters to the listener from Tonya Bolden and Eric Velasquez. Strong Voices is a tremendous introduction to the extraordinary words spoken in history.
Supplemental enhancement PDF accompanies the audiobook.
PLEASE NOTE: When you purchase this title, the accompanying PDF will be available in your Audible Library along with the audio.
©2020 Tonya Bolden and Cokie Roberts (P)2020 HarperCollins PublishersListeners also enjoyed...
-
We Are Our Mothers' Daughters
- Revised and Expanded Edition
- By: Cokie Roberts
- Narrated by: Cokie Roberts
- Length: 7 hrs and 43 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
In this 10th anniversary edition, renowned political commentator Cokie Roberts once again examines the nature of women's roles. From mother to mechanic, sister to soldier, Roberts reveals how much progress has now been made and how much further we have to go. Updated and expanded to include a diverse new cast of women, including Hillary Clinton, Laura Bush, Billie Jean King, and others, this collection of essays offers tremendous insight into the opportunities and challenges that women encounter today.
-
-
A must read or “listen” for all women and girls!!
- By monica on 09-30-19
By: Cokie Roberts
-
Capital Dames
- The Civil War and the Women of Washington, 1848-1868
- By: Cokie Roberts
- Narrated by: Cokie Roberts
- Length: 14 hrs and 35 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
With the outbreak of the Civil War, the small, social, Southern town of Washington, DC, found itself caught between warring sides in a four-year battle that would determine the future of the United States. After the declaration of secession, many fascinating Southern women left the city, leaving their friends - such as Adele Cutts Douglas and Elizabeth Blair Lee - to grapple with questions of safety and sanitation as the capital was transformed into an immense Union army camp and later a hospital.
-
-
Enlightening
- By Jean on 05-07-15
By: Cokie Roberts
-
Founding Mothers
- The Women Who Raised Our Nation
- By: Cokie Roberts
- Narrated by: Cokie Roberts
- Length: 6 hrs and 43 mins
- Abridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Cokie returns with Founding Mothers, an intimate look at the passionate women whose tireless pursuits on behalf of their families and country proved just as crucial to the forging of a new nation as the rebellion that established it.
-
-
Founding Mothers
- By Carol Roath on 05-31-04
By: Cokie Roberts
-
Dinners with Ruth
- A Memoir of Friendship
- By: Nina Totenberg
- Narrated by: Nina Totenberg
- Length: 9 hrs and 30 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Four years before Nina Totenberg was hired at NPR, where she cemented her legacy as a prizewinning reporter, and nearly twenty-two years before Ruth Bader Ginsburg was appointed to the Supreme Court, Nina called Ruth. A reporter for The National Observer, Nina was curious about Ruth’s legal brief, asking the Supreme Court to do something revolutionary: declare a law that discriminated “on the basis of sex” to be unconstitutional. That call launched a remarkable, nearly fifty-year friendship.
-
-
Not quite what I expected
- By Debra Malone on 09-23-22
By: Nina Totenberg
-
Dark Sky Rising: Reconstruction and the Dawn of Jim Crow (Scholastic Focus)
- By: Henry Louis Gates Jr., Tonya Bolden
- Narrated by: Dion Graham
- Length: 3 hrs and 4 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
This is a story about America during and after Reconstruction, one of history's most pivotal and misunderstood chapters. In a stirring account of emancipation, the struggle for citizenship and national reunion, and the advent of racial segregation, the renowned Harvard scholar delivers a book that is illuminating and timely. Real-life accounts drive the narrative, spanning the half century between the Civil War and Birth of a Nation.
-
-
Very good YA history of Reconstruction
- By Emily Olds on 07-28-19
By: Henry Louis Gates Jr., and others
-
The 1619 Project
- A New Origin Story
- By: Nikole Hannah-Jones, The New York Times Magazine, Caitlin Roper - editor, and others
- Narrated by: Nikole Hannah-Jones, Full Cast
- Length: 18 hrs and 57 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
The New York Times Magazine’s award-winning “1619 Project” issue reframed our understanding of American history by placing slavery and its continuing legacy at the center of our national narrative. This new book substantially expands on that work, weaving together 18 essays that explore the legacy of slavery in present-day America with 36 poems and works of fiction that illuminate key moments of oppression, struggle, and resistance.
-
-
Comprehensive and Cutting
- By Thomas Ray on 12-30-21
By: Nikole Hannah-Jones, and others
-
We Are Our Mothers' Daughters
- Revised and Expanded Edition
- By: Cokie Roberts
- Narrated by: Cokie Roberts
- Length: 7 hrs and 43 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
In this 10th anniversary edition, renowned political commentator Cokie Roberts once again examines the nature of women's roles. From mother to mechanic, sister to soldier, Roberts reveals how much progress has now been made and how much further we have to go. Updated and expanded to include a diverse new cast of women, including Hillary Clinton, Laura Bush, Billie Jean King, and others, this collection of essays offers tremendous insight into the opportunities and challenges that women encounter today.
-
-
A must read or “listen” for all women and girls!!
- By monica on 09-30-19
By: Cokie Roberts
-
Capital Dames
- The Civil War and the Women of Washington, 1848-1868
- By: Cokie Roberts
- Narrated by: Cokie Roberts
- Length: 14 hrs and 35 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
With the outbreak of the Civil War, the small, social, Southern town of Washington, DC, found itself caught between warring sides in a four-year battle that would determine the future of the United States. After the declaration of secession, many fascinating Southern women left the city, leaving their friends - such as Adele Cutts Douglas and Elizabeth Blair Lee - to grapple with questions of safety and sanitation as the capital was transformed into an immense Union army camp and later a hospital.
-
-
Enlightening
- By Jean on 05-07-15
By: Cokie Roberts
-
Founding Mothers
- The Women Who Raised Our Nation
- By: Cokie Roberts
- Narrated by: Cokie Roberts
- Length: 6 hrs and 43 mins
- Abridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Cokie returns with Founding Mothers, an intimate look at the passionate women whose tireless pursuits on behalf of their families and country proved just as crucial to the forging of a new nation as the rebellion that established it.
-
-
Founding Mothers
- By Carol Roath on 05-31-04
By: Cokie Roberts
-
Dinners with Ruth
- A Memoir of Friendship
- By: Nina Totenberg
- Narrated by: Nina Totenberg
- Length: 9 hrs and 30 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Four years before Nina Totenberg was hired at NPR, where she cemented her legacy as a prizewinning reporter, and nearly twenty-two years before Ruth Bader Ginsburg was appointed to the Supreme Court, Nina called Ruth. A reporter for The National Observer, Nina was curious about Ruth’s legal brief, asking the Supreme Court to do something revolutionary: declare a law that discriminated “on the basis of sex” to be unconstitutional. That call launched a remarkable, nearly fifty-year friendship.
-
-
Not quite what I expected
- By Debra Malone on 09-23-22
By: Nina Totenberg
-
Dark Sky Rising: Reconstruction and the Dawn of Jim Crow (Scholastic Focus)
- By: Henry Louis Gates Jr., Tonya Bolden
- Narrated by: Dion Graham
- Length: 3 hrs and 4 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
This is a story about America during and after Reconstruction, one of history's most pivotal and misunderstood chapters. In a stirring account of emancipation, the struggle for citizenship and national reunion, and the advent of racial segregation, the renowned Harvard scholar delivers a book that is illuminating and timely. Real-life accounts drive the narrative, spanning the half century between the Civil War and Birth of a Nation.
-
-
Very good YA history of Reconstruction
- By Emily Olds on 07-28-19
By: Henry Louis Gates Jr., and others
-
The 1619 Project
- A New Origin Story
- By: Nikole Hannah-Jones, The New York Times Magazine, Caitlin Roper - editor, and others
- Narrated by: Nikole Hannah-Jones, Full Cast
- Length: 18 hrs and 57 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
The New York Times Magazine’s award-winning “1619 Project” issue reframed our understanding of American history by placing slavery and its continuing legacy at the center of our national narrative. This new book substantially expands on that work, weaving together 18 essays that explore the legacy of slavery in present-day America with 36 poems and works of fiction that illuminate key moments of oppression, struggle, and resistance.
-
-
Comprehensive and Cutting
- By Thomas Ray on 12-30-21
By: Nikole Hannah-Jones, and others
-
No More Lies
- By: Dick Gregory
- Narrated by: Prentice Onayemi
- Length: 10 hrs and 41 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
In 1972, during the Black Power Movement, iconoclast Dick Gregory challenged one of the foundations of America itself - its history, which had been written almost exclusively from the white male perspective. In No More Lies, this true trailblazer gave voice to African Americans, speaking their truth about the past and race relations in the United States. No More Lies offers this incomparable satirist’s intellectual, conspiratorial, and humorous spin on the facts.
-
-
Could have been written in 2024
- By Stephanie Brown on 06-14-24
By: Dick Gregory
-
Four Hundred Souls
- A Community History of African America, 1619-2019
- By: Ibram X. Kendi - editor, Keisha N. Blain - editor
- Narrated by: full cast
- Length: 14 hrs and 2 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
A chorus of extraordinary voices comes together to tell one of history’s great epics: the 400-year journey of African Americans from 1619 to the present - edited by Ibram X. Kendi, author of How to Be an Antiracist, and Keisha N. Blain, author of Set the World on Fire.
-
-
History never taught
- By Scott P ODonnell on 02-16-21
By: Ibram X. Kendi - editor, and others
-
Frederick Douglass
- Prophet of Freedom
- By: David W. Blight
- Narrated by: Prentice Onayemi
- Length: 36 hrs and 57 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
As a young man, Frederick Douglass (1818-1895) escaped from slavery in Baltimore, Maryland. He was fortunate to have been taught to read by his slave owner mistress, and he would go on to become one of the major literary figures of his time. He wrote three versions of his autobiography over the course of his lifetime and published his own newspaper. His very existence gave the lie to slave owners: with dignity and great intelligence, he bore witness to the brutality of slavery.
-
-
The sound of rollerskating in sand
- By Rico X Ludovici on 02-06-19
By: David W. Blight
-
Across That Bridge
- A Vision for Change and the Future of America
- By: John Lewis
- Narrated by: Keith David
- Length: 5 hrs and 27 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
In Across That Bridge, Congressman John Lewis draws from his experience as a prominent leader of the civil rights movement to offer timeless wisdom, poignant recollections, and powerful principles for anyone interested in challenging injustices and inspiring real change toward a freer, more peaceful society. The civil rights movement gave rise to the protest culture we know today, and the experiences of leaders like Congressman Lewis, a close confidant to Martin Luther King, Jr., have never been more relevant.
-
-
Lessons From A True Hero
- By Jeremy on 04-19-19
By: John Lewis
-
The Radical King
- By: Cornel West - editor, Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.
- Narrated by: LeVar Burton, Gabourey Sidibe, Cornel West, and others
- Length: 11 hrs and 8 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Wanda Sykes, LeVar Burton, Leslie Odom, Jr., and Gabourey Sidibe head a cast of beloved actors performing 23 selections from the speeches, sermons, and essays of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.—many never recorded during his lifetime. For the first time, teachers, students, and thoughtful listeners can hear dramatic interpretations of Dr. King’s words, chosen and introduced by Cornel West.
-
-
Not the best MLK audiobook
- By Nathan White on 02-07-19
By: Cornel West - editor, and others
-
The Autobiography of Martin Luther King, Jr.
- By: Clayborne Carson - editor, Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.
- Narrated by: Levar Burton
- Length: 9 hrs and 35 mins
- Abridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
He was a husband, a father, a preacher - and the preeminent leader of a movement that continues to transform America and the world. Now, in a special program commissioned and authorized by his family, here is the life and times of Martin Luther King, Jr. Featuring King's I Have a Dream Speech.
-
-
A Fascinating Slice of History
- By John-Mark Stensvaag on 08-05-03
By: Clayborne Carson - editor, and others
-
The Soul of America
- The Battle for Our Better Angels
- By: Jon Meacham
- Narrated by: Fred Sanders, Jon Meacham
- Length: 10 hrs and 55 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Our current climate of partisan fury is not new, and in The Soul of America Meacham shows us how what Abraham Lincoln called the “better angels of our nature” have repeatedly won the day. Painting surprising portraits of Lincoln and other presidents, including Ulysses S. Grant, Theodore Roosevelt, and LBJ, and illuminating the courage of influential citizen activists and civil rights pioneers, Meacham brings vividly to life turning points in American history. Each of these dramatic hours have been shaped by the contest to lead the country to look forward rather than back.
-
-
Thanks! I needed this!
- By Kindle Customer on 05-29-18
By: Jon Meacham
-
His Truth Is Marching On
- John Lewis and the Power of Hope
- By: Jon Meacham, John Lewis - afterword
- Narrated by: JD Jackson, Jon Meacham
- Length: 10 hrs
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
An intimate and revealing portrait of civil rights icon and longtime US congressman John Lewis, linking his life to the painful quest for justice in America from the 1950s to the present - from the Pulitzer Prize-winning author of The Soul of America.
-
-
Absolutely remarkable!
- By Janie on 08-30-20
By: Jon Meacham, and others
-
The Souls of Black Folk
- By: W. E. B. Du Bois
- Narrated by: Mirron Willis
- Length: 8 hrs and 33 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
“The problem of the twentieth century is the problem of the color line,” writes Du Bois, in one of the most prophetic works in all of American literature. First published in 1903, this collection of 15 essays dared to describe the racism that prevailed at that time in America—and to demand an end to it. Du Bois’ writing draws on his early experiences, from teaching in the hills of Tennessee, to the death of his infant son, to his historic break with the conciliatory position of Booker T. Washington.
-
-
Essays of 'life and love and strife and failure'
- By ESK on 02-08-13
By: W. E. B. Du Bois
-
These Truths
- A History of the United States
- By: Jill Lepore
- Narrated by: Jill Lepore
- Length: 29 hrs
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
In the most ambitious one-volume American history in decades, award-winning historian Jill Lepore offers a magisterial account of the origins and rise of a divided nation. In riveting prose, These Truths tells the story of America, beginning in 1492, to ask whether the course of events has proven the nation's founding truths or belied them.
-
-
Good Story but distracting sound engineering
- By MindSpiker on 11-21-18
By: Jill Lepore
-
What Unites Us
- Reflections on Patriotism
- By: Dan Rather, Elliot Kirschner
- Narrated by: Dan Rather
- Length: 7 hrs and 5 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
In a collection of original essays, the venerated television journalist, Dan Rather, celebrates our shared values and what matters most in our great country, and shows us what patriotism looks like. Writing about the institutions that sustain us, such as public libraries, public schools, and national parks; the values that have transformed us, such as the struggle for civil rights; and the drive toward science and innovation that has made the US great, Rather brings his experience on the frontlines of the world's biggest stories, and offers listeners a way forward.
-
-
Hope. For both sides of the aisle.
- By Leigh A. Barrett on 01-30-18
By: Dan Rather, and others
-
I've Been to the Mountaintop
- The Landmark Speeches of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.
- By: Edited by Clayborne Carson, Kris Shepard
- Narrated by: Andrew Young, Rosa Parks
- Length: 7 hrs and 38 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
These 12 moving speeches voiced by Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. are original recordings collected here for the first time ever. Plus, listen to MLK deliver some of his most famous sermons in A Knock at Midnight.
-
-
A walk through MLK's public comments
- By Donald on 12-20-02
By: Edited by Clayborne Carson, and others