First published 1985
Tom Keene stands at the edge of civilization in Richland County, Ohio, where the wilderness begins and safety ends. The year is 1811, and he has joined other New Englanders pushing into territory that tests every assumption about survival. The land promises opportunity but delivers hardship. Wild animals prowl the forests. Weather turns deadly without warning. Neighbors become lifelines or threats depending on circumstances. Keene must navigate not only the physical dangers of frontier life but the complex relationships that form when people depend on each other for their lives. Each day brings new challenges that force him to choose between his old values and the harsh realities of this remote place. The story follows Keene through the brutal winter of 1811-12, when survival depends on quick thinking, hard work, and the bonds he builds with fellow settlers who share his uncertain fate.
Genres: american-fiction, historical-fiction, adventure, 19th-century
Vibes: intimate, suspenseful, thought-provoking
Tropes: fish-out-of-water, found-family
Setting: Richland County, Ohio
Period: 1811, 1811-12
159 pages · Hardcover · Harper & Row