The DeerSlayer (The Leatherstocking Tales #1)

The Deerslayer, or The first Warpath was written by James Fenimore Cooper, first published in 1841.

This novel is a wonderful adventure in the classical sense of life, love, and scriptural lessons. It is a romanticized depiction of upstate New York during the 1740s and is the prequel to "The Last of the Mohicans" although it was written later. The protagonist, Deerslayer, is portrayed in a heroic, idealistic manner. With Cooper's detail writing, it is definitely recommended reading it as an introduction to "The Last of the Mohicans."

It talks about a restless white youth raised by Indians, Natty Bumppo, also called Deerslayer for the daring that sets him apart from his peers. But he has yet to meet the test of human conflict. In a tale of violent action and superbly sustained suspense, the harsh realities of tribal warfare force him to kill his first foe, then face torture at the stake. Still yet another kind of initiation awaits him when he discovers not only the ruthlessness of "civilized" men, but also the special danger of a woman's will. His reckless spirit transformed into mature courage and moral certainty, the Deerslayer emerges to face life with nobility as pure and proud as the wilderness whose fierce beauty and freedom have claimed his heart.