Andrew Jackson and the Miracle of New Orleans

Andrew Jackson and the Miracle of New Orleans by Brian Kilmeade and Don Yaeger           Audio Book:  5 hours, 45 minutes    Paperback Book: 432 pages       

Good historical account of the life of Andrew Jackson during his military caeer.   I learned how he got his nickname, “Old Hickory,”  one of his soldiers said due to Jackson working through excruciating pain that Jackson was as tough as an old hickory tree.   I also learned that he sustained many bullets in his body and continued to serve regardless.    Seems he had constant terrible abdominable pain from bouts of dysentery over the years and a delicate gut.   He often had to ride his horse bent over as if lying on its back to try to ease his pain.    He carried a few bullets in his body for the duration of his life due to their being lodged in places in his body that were inoperable.    While a keen father figure to the men in his charge who he stood up for at every chance even to paying for things they needed out of his own pocket when the government wouldn’t come through, Jackson also had a notorious quick temper and would call for a duel without much provocation and had killed his opponent during at least one dual and likely more.   Jackson had to plead the importance of stopping the British from taking the port of New Orleans which was the lifeline of trade coming into the country up the Mississippi River.    When the government would not send troops to help him keep the British at bay in NOLA,  he did his own work in recruiting local men, blacks, whites, native americans, even pirates.   The pirate John Lafitte actually helped the United States by giving them intel on how the British had approached him to try to get him and all the pirates to help the British win against the Americans for which they would be pardoned of all their transgressions against the crown.     Lafitte told the British he would need a day to think about it during which time he got with the Americans and told them what the British had in mind, where they would be attacking next and what troops etc. they had to attack with.     Jackson appreciated the help of the pirates and praised them after the battle was one.   The writers put a lot of passion into this book – it shows.    A good book and an excellent history lesson.