James Fenimore Cooper : Sea Tales : The Pilot / The Red Rover (Library of America) [Hardcover]

James Fenimore Cooper (Author), Kay Seymour House (Editor), Thomas Philbrick (Editor)

Book Description

Series: Library of America | Publication Date: August 1, 1991

Having invented the novel of the western frontier, Cooper went on to invent the sea novel. "The Pilot"'s shadowy hero--modeled on John Paul Jones--leads the American Navy in dangerous raids on the English coast. In "The Red Rover," a notorious pirate is chased by a disguised agent of the Royal Navy. Romance, adventure, political intrigue, revelations of mistaken identity--here is Cooper at his best: a painter of brilliant seascapes, a riveting narrator of suspense.

Editorial Reviews

From the Publisher

The Library of America is an award-winning, nonprofit program dedicated to publishing America's best and most significant writing in handsome, enduring volumes, featuring authoritative texts. Hailed as "the most important book-publishing project in the nation's history" (Newsweek), this acclaimed series is restoring America's literary heritage in "the finest-looking, longest-lasting edition ever made" (New Republic).

About the Author

James Fenimore Cooper (1789-1851) grew up at Otsego Hall, his father’s manorial estate near Lake Otsego in upstate New York. Educated at Yale, he spent five years at sea, as a foremast hand and then as a midshipman in the navy. At thirty he was suddenly plunged into a literary career when his wife challenged his claim that he could write a better book that the English novel he was reading to her. The result was Precaution (1820), a novel of manners. His second book, The Spy (1821), was an immediate success, and with The Pioneers (1823) he began his series of Leatherstocking Tales. By 1826 when The Last of the Mohicans appeared, his standing as a major novelist was clearly established. From 1826 to 1833 Cooper and his family lived and traveled in France, Switzerland, Italy, and Germany. Two of his most successful works, The Prairie and The Red Rover, were published in 1827. He returned to Otsego Hall in 1834, and after a series of relatively unsuccessful books of essays, travel sketches, and history, he returned to fiction – and to Leatherstocking – with The Pathfinder (1840) and The Deerslayer (1841). In his last decade he faced declining popularity brought on in part by his waspish attacks on critics and political opponents. Just before his death in 1851 an edition of his works led to a reappraisal of his fiction and somewhat restored his reputation as the first of American writers.

Thomas Philbrick is professor emeritus of English at the University of Pittsburgh.

Product Details

• Reading level: Ages 18 and up
  
• Hardcover: 902 pages
• Publisher: Library of America (August 1, 1991)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0940450704
• ISBN-13: 978-0940450707
• Product Dimensions: 8.1 x 5.2 x 1.3 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.4 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 3.8 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (4 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #917,178 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

22 of 23 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars The Red Rover is wonderful!, October 7, 2000

By A Customer

This review is from: James Fenimore Cooper : Sea Tales : The Pilot / The Red Rover (Library of America) (Hardcover)

Instead of reading from the beginning, I started with The Red Rover first. I enjoyed it immensely; it was filled with sailors' superstitions, eery encounters with unknown ships, and many tales of the 'unexplained' occurances on sea. There were wonderful descriptions from Cooper that appealed to the senses. The Red Rover is a page-turning tale of suspense. The reader is left to ponder over the identity of the captain Red Rover and the nature of his near magical power over his men, yet Cooper gives the reader a slap in the face when we realize that it is our hero, "Wilder", who is not what he seems! The story continues and ends with more identity-revealing. I finished The Red Rover with a dazzled mind, and then turned to The Pilot. Expecting more intriguing tales of the sea, this book was a let-down in that it nearly focuses on two young lieutenants trying to kidnap their lovers from England and whisk them away, back to America. Redeeming the tale slightly is the vague pilot himself, never named, but patterned on a heroic and rather "chivalrous" John Paul Jones.

9 of 10 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Another solid Library of America title...., June 6, 2006

By 

nto62 (Corona, CA USA) - See all my reviews
(VINE VOICE)   

This review is from: James Fenimore Cooper : Sea Tales : The Pilot / The Red Rover (Library of America) (Hardcover)

Comprising two novels, Sea Tales reflects Cooper's interest in matters maritime. More famous for The Leatherstocking Tales which brought us The Last of the Mohicans, few know that Cooper wrote a history of the US Navy which is considered a classic of naval literature. In Sea Tales, Cooper extends his fascination with a fictional bent. The Pilot begins off the shores of England during the American Revolution. To fulfill a secret mission, Cooper chooses one of America's early naval heroes as his protagonist, but leaves only clues as to who this might be. We follow our hero and his allies through twisting and often improbable plots. Yet, as his mission occurs mainly on shore, we find a "sea tale" that is surprisingly landlocked.

Not so in the second story, The Red Rover. Here Cooper casts us upon the savage sea with a vengeance as a buccaneer and the British navy scheme and maneuver to gain the upper hand. The Red Rover is clearly the better of the two tales, but modern readers must be prepared for a verbose narrative with bulging descriptives and implausible plot twists that wouldn't fly in a latter day novel.

Library of America publishes a product that truly finds the sweet spot between quality and price. I own many Library of America editions and they do not disappoint. James Fenimore Cooper's Sea Tales is no exception. Cooper's content is as pleasurable as the book within which it is bound. If you enjoy 19th-century literature, the sea, sailing, or simply authors who truly relish the story they're telling, you'll want to devote the time and expense. 4 stars.

2.0 out of 5 stars Slow-moving -- not his best, February 25, 2011

By 

E.J. Kaye (Chicago) - See all my reviews

This review is from: James Fenimore Cooper : Sea Tales : The Pilot / The Red Rover (Library of America) (Hardcover)

I love Cooper's Leatherstocking Tales (Last of the Mohicans, Deerslayer, etc.) but these are....just.....so.....slow.....moving. The detail is interesting, but the dialogue is stilted and plot telegraphed early. Unless you're contemplating a thesis on the writing of Cooper (and you need info on his more boring works) I'd skip this