First published 2001
Simon Kenton has already earned his reputation as a woodsman, fighter and scout before his eighteenth birthday. The young frontiersman possesses incredible physical strength and endurance as he ventures into the wilderness that will become West Virginia, Kentucky, Michigan, Ohio, Indiana, and Illinois. This beautiful but deadly country belongs to the Indians, who kill white settlers along forest paths and riverbanks to protect their territory. Kenton works to open the Northwest Territory to settlement, matching the efforts of his friend Daniel Boone. Standing against him is Tecumseh, the brilliant Shawnee chief who uses his intellect and charisma to forge an Indian confederacy. Tecumseh's alliance comes desperately close to stopping white westward expansion. Both men represent the best virtues of their peoples. Kenton embodies the dignity and kindness of the ideal frontier hero, while Tecumseh fights for a doomed cause and a dying race. Their conflict reveals the grandeur and tragedy of wilderness America during its penetration and settlement.
Genres: historical-fiction, 20th-century, adventure, 19th-century, american-history
Vibes: emotional, suspenseful, thought-provoking
Tropes: enemies-to-lovers, tragic-hero
Setting: Illinois, Indiana, Kentucky, Michigan, Ohio, West Virginia
Period: 19th-century, 20th-century
626 pages · Paperback · Jesse Stuart Foundation