The Ride: Paul Revere and the Night That Saved America by Kostya Kennedy ~ a Review

by Donna Huber

On April 18, 1775, a Boston-based silversmith, engraver, and anti-British political operative named Paul Revere set out on a borrowed horse to fulfill a dangerous but crucial to alert American colonists of advancing British troops, which would seek to crush their nascent revolt.

Amazon affiliate links are used on this site. A free book was provided for an honest review.

March 2025; Macmillan Audio; 9781250381491
audio (5h 15m), ebook, print; history nonfiction

Did you have to read (or perhaps memorize) Paul Revere's Ride by Henry Wadsworth Longfellow when you were in school? Even if you didn't you probably remember from the history lessons the famous line, "One if by land, and two if by sea" referring to the number of lanterns that the sexton at a local church was to hang to notify the patriots of the coming British forces. And that is probably all you know about Paul Revere. At least that is all I know about him.

I enjoyed a book about Benedict Arnold a couple of years ago and I feel like I need to learn more about the American Revolution and those who fought for a free and democratic society. 

As with any history nonfiction book I pick up, I never know exactly what I'm getting into. Sometimes is a dry read with long lists of dates and names. Other times, it is more of a narrative story. Thankfully, The Ride is the latter. I listened to the audiobook and I enjoyed Johnny Heller's narration.

I'm starting to think the reason we only learned about this one ride of Paul Revere is because there is little to really know about the man. He was an express rider during the American Revolution - his job was to carry communications to various patriot leaders. Because of this, he was often out of the fray of any of the battles. 

Kennedy includes a few more tidbits about Revere's life including his family, his career as a silversmith, and his rise in the political scene. But a lot of the book was about various events that he was not directly involved with. Also, the author uses speculation to transition between various subjects and therefore touches on the issue of slavery a bit more than I was expecting in a book about the American Revolution.

I thought that the book jumped around a bit which made it difficult to follow as an audiobook. But my attention may have wandered a little as well which contributed to my confusion. If you regularly listen to history or other nonfiction podcast, you shouldn't have a problem with it.

I liked that the author brought up the poem in the final chapters of the book. He also spent some time mentioning Revere's fellow rider William Dawes, who has all but been forgotten by history. I remember a few years ago hearing about a female Paul Revere. Kennedy shares the story as well. The girl (she was only 16 years old at the time) was named Sybil Ludington. Finally, he concludes with stories from Revere's descendant Paul Revere III, which ends the book on a light but poignant note.

An interesting point - April 18 is the 250th anniversary of the famous ride, making it the perfect time to pick up this book.

Buy The Ride at Amazon

Donna Huber is an avid reader and natural encourager. She is the founder of Girl Who Reads and the author of how-to marketing book Secrets to a Successful Blog Tour.

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