The Deerslayer, James Fenimore Cooper
The Deerslayer, James Fenimore Cooper
1 Rating(s)
List: $31.95 | Sale: $22.36
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The Deerslayer

Author: James Fenimore Cooper

Narrator: Raymond Todd

Unabridged: 22 hr 14 min

Format: Digital Audiobook Download

Published: 01/01/2006

Categories: Fiction, Classic


Synopsis

In this, the first of the Leatherstocking Tales, we meet Natty Bumppo as a young man living in upstate New York in the early 1740s. Bumppo, called Deerslayer, and his friend Hurry Harry approach Lake Glimmerglass, or Otsego, where the trapper Thomas Hutter lives with his daughters, the beautiful Judith and the feebleminded Hetty.

About James Fenimore Cooper

James Fenimore Cooper (1789-1851) was America's first successful popular novelist. Son of the prominent federalist William Cooper, founder of the Cooperstown settlement, James was educated at Yale in preparation for a genteel life as a federalist gentleman. After his father's death in an 1809 duel, Cooper quickly squandered his inheritance, and at thirty was on the verge of bankruptcy. He decided to try his hand at writing. His first novel, Precaution, a domestic comedy set in England, lost money, but Cooper had discovered his vocation.

Cooper established his reputation after his second novel, The Spy, and in his third book, the autobiographical Pioneers, Cooper introduced the character of Natty Bumppo, a uniquely American personification of rugged individualism and the pioneer spirit. A second book featuring Bumppo, The Last of the Mohicans, quickly became the most widely read work of the day, solidifying Cooper's popularity in the United States and in Europe.

Cooper was a prolific writer, publishing thirty-two novels, twelve works of nonfiction, one play, and numerous pamphlets and articles. His most lasting contributions to American literature were his five books about Natty Bumppo. Later anthologized as The Leatherstocking Tales, they are best read in the order in which they were written: The Pioneers, The Last of the Mohicans, The Prairie, The Pathfinder, and The Deerslayer.


Reviews

Goodreads review by Matthew on August 05, 2020

I think Cooper was paid by the word and repetition. The story in this novel could have easily been shared in a satisfactory way in one-third to one-half as many words. Several times I though I had accidentally jumped back in the book and was rereading a section. If you read this one, prepare for muc......more

Goodreads review by Werner on August 22, 2021

Note, Aug. 22, 2021: I've just edited this review to correct a couple of minor typos. Though this book was the last of the Leatherstocking Tales series (which follows the life of backwoods hunter and scout Natty Bumpo --"Leatherstocking" and "Deerslayer" are two of the several nicknames he'll bear du......more

Goodreads review by Rob on April 13, 2024

I picked up The Deerslayer in a used bookstore not too far from Upstate New York where the book is set. I get a kick out of reading books that take place in locations I am visiting and always enjoy catching a missed classic, so, for dual reasons, it became my next “currently reading”. High melodrama......more

Goodreads review by Jean on August 11, 2023

The Deerslayer by James Fenimore Cooper was written in 1841. I found the story interesting. The more formal writing typical of books written in the 1800s was fun to hear, but I discovered I kept wanting to push the story along as it seemed very slow. I thought it was a good idea to reread a classic......more

Goodreads review by Ashley on September 20, 2016

I chose to read this book because I had accepted to read the second in the series (The Last of the Mohicans) as part of a challenge, but I didn't want to jump in at the second book. This book also conveniently met the requirements for yet another challenge I'm completing; so, a win both ways! I real......more