Back a long time ago, my sister belonged to a Book of the Month Club. Or some other book club.
Anyway, she got this book along with several others. She passed this one, as well as some others, along to me. I was probably nine years old when I read this. The author is Jere Wheelwright. I ran up on a copy and just finished re-reading it.
This is about frontier days in KY. (Kaintuckee).
The protagonist, James Cheston, a 19 year old boy from a privileged family in Maryland in 1777 or so, goes to Kaintuckee to claim land belonging to his father, who is a POW of the British, at the behest of his uncle, who is brash and foolish.
About a fourth of the book is travel along the Wilderness Road, blazed by Daniel Boone. Sets the mood well, and descriptive of the countryside. Along the way, Jim meets, incidentally, some famous people. Like Thomas Jefferson, Mad Anne Bailey, Simon Butler Kenton, Daniel Boone, and a few others. The remainder of the book takes place in Boonesborough.
Not a lot of action except at the end and about half way through it. The last action is the siege of Boonesborough.
Some lack of research shows; in loading his Deckhard rifle, he "spits" the bullet into the barrel.
I'm amazed that some of the scenes I remembered after 61 years.
A good read for a nine-year-old, some was over my head at the time. A pretty good for read for an adult reader who isn't looking for Great Literature. Definitely zero adult themes, strictly PG. As a historical, it's good, down to names of relatively minor characters for the period. Wheelwright did his homework.
Anyway, she got this book along with several others. She passed this one, as well as some others, along to me. I was probably nine years old when I read this. The author is Jere Wheelwright. I ran up on a copy and just finished re-reading it.
This is about frontier days in KY. (Kaintuckee).
The protagonist, James Cheston, a 19 year old boy from a privileged family in Maryland in 1777 or so, goes to Kaintuckee to claim land belonging to his father, who is a POW of the British, at the behest of his uncle, who is brash and foolish.
About a fourth of the book is travel along the Wilderness Road, blazed by Daniel Boone. Sets the mood well, and descriptive of the countryside. Along the way, Jim meets, incidentally, some famous people. Like Thomas Jefferson, Mad Anne Bailey, Simon Butler Kenton, Daniel Boone, and a few others. The remainder of the book takes place in Boonesborough.
Not a lot of action except at the end and about half way through it. The last action is the siege of Boonesborough.
Some lack of research shows; in loading his Deckhard rifle, he "spits" the bullet into the barrel.
I'm amazed that some of the scenes I remembered after 61 years.
A good read for a nine-year-old, some was over my head at the time. A pretty good for read for an adult reader who isn't looking for Great Literature. Definitely zero adult themes, strictly PG. As a historical, it's good, down to names of relatively minor characters for the period. Wheelwright did his homework.
