A Great Book

A book will worth your time. I found myself trying to figure out the "bad guys" and the "good guys" and realized that I couldn't do it. The human sacrifices revolted me but the treachery and greed of the Cortes expedition disgusted me. Anyone interested in the forces that transformed the Americas should get this book.

23 people found this helpful

This will give you the rest of the story.

I chose this book because I love history and knew NOTHING about Cortez except some vague high school history or Hollywood account of greedy Spaniards unnecessarily wiping out the poor, innocent Aztecs . Um. Not the whole story. Granted, the Aztecs were minding their own business when Cortez arrived - having built the largest civilization on the planet. Granted, there was the whole gold and greed thing, but there was also disgust for human sacrifice and roasted babies. Which was worse? This book does a great job of explaining how the whole conquering thing went down. The book was really good and the narrator did a good job. Other reviewers commented on his silly Spanish accent - and I agree. But, it made me snort/laugh every time I heard it - so that's not so bad, is it? I agree with another reviewer - I would have liked to have seen the wonders that Cortez saw.

18 people found this helpful

Read the Book, Skip the Audible

I think this would have been far more enjoyable reading, rather than listening to the audio. The story was interesting and one that I have long wanted to read given the historic significance of Cortes' arrival.

Unfortunately, the narration is pretty bad. As many have pointed out, the narrator uses this terrible growl to mimic a Spanish accent. Interestingly, he does not do the same when quoting the locals.

While that was bad, the worse part in my opinion was the pacing, especially in the early chapters. I thought the narration was too fast and unnatural. It did not allow for me to take enough time to build the scene in my mind before having to quickly move on. This moderated slightly as the book went on, but it still caused this to be less than enjoyable to listen to.

If you really want to read this, I'd suggest the book over the audio.

11 people found this helpful

Fun book. Horrendous pronunciation.

The book is fun, and a helpful narrative of Cortes’ invasion.

The reader, however, butchers even the most well known words including the name of one of the belligerent nations! In a book about the conflict between the Spanish and the Mexica, it’s important to be able to pronounce the words “Spanish” and “Mexica.” The reader successfully pronounces one of them.

And it’s not as if Mexica, or many of the other Nahuatl words are particularly difficult to pronounce. Mexica, for example, is just “meh-she-kah.” Easy.

At first I thought it was me, but...it’s not. The performer couldn’t be bothered to make sure he was pronouncing even the most common words correctly.

10 people found this helpful

Great story, bad narration.

The story itself is fascinating, but the narrator was terrible. His mispronunciation of the names and his attempt to feign accents when speaking in the characters own words was cringeworthy. Half the time he tried to sound like a Spaniard it sounded more like a pirate imitation.
With that being said, the book is well worth reading, and I still enjoyed it.

8 people found this helpful

Excellent description of the Conquest of Mexico!

Where does Conquistador rank among all the audiobooks you’ve listened to so far?

Really, this is one of the very best history books of the Mexican Conquest i have found. If you want to know the details of the amazing conquest of Meso America by the lawyer, Cortez, listen to this book.

What did you like best about this story?

The amazing detail of the lives of the key players, both European and Indian, the detail of the strategy, the detail of the nature of the Indian lives and how quickly so many accepted the Spanish as the superior tribe. Also, the detail of the politics, Spanish, and Indian, that Cortez had to contend with and manage.

What does Patrick Lawlor bring to the story that you wouldn’t experience if you just read the book?

The telling of the story is so rich. it gives a 3D feel to the story.

Did you have an extreme reaction to this book? Did it make you laugh or cry?

My extreme reaction is: OMG these men were men! They truly were conquistatores, and yet they lived according to the laws of the times. I do not know anyone that could have done what they did, the living with constant expectation of death or mutilation, the constant physical and mental hardships, the hope of riches ( that did not happen for most of them) and the sense of adventure.

Any additional comments?

If you are interested in Mexican or Central American, or Spanish history, buy the book. If you are interested in the class of civilizations, buy the book. If you are interested in the nature of human behavior, buy the book.

5 people found this helpful

Well written, poorly narrated.

Buddy Levy writes a gripping account of the conquest of Mexico. The narrator, however, fails miserably in his attempt at imagining how the Spanish would have spoken english. I could not stop thinking about Richard Dreyfus in the movie "Moon Over Parador." The narration ruined the experience for me. I can't finish the audiobook. I'll look for the paper version in the library.

7 people found this helpful

Excellent history of the conquest of Mexico

Narration was clear and easy to understand. Story was engaging and interesting from beginning to end.

2 people found this helpful

Wow!

Definitely right up there with the likes of 1491, 1776, and Team of Rivals!

5 people found this helpful

Entertaining Adventure Story

The book focuses on Cortez mainly with a dash of Montezuma and other Aztec leaders to provide a foil. As it should be Cortez is presented as an enigmatic character in history. His ambition and skill matched by his greed and cruelty. The story provides excellent insight into exactly how Cortez conquered Mexico and also what his thought process was during it. There are many asides and anecdotal stories that add to the experience and I particularly enjoyed the epilogue. Reader did a good job, even though as others have mentioned his Spanish accent is not the best. He has good pacing and seems to enjoy the material.

1 person found this helpful