The Last of the Mohicans by James Fenimore Cooper & Fenimore Cooper's Literary Offenses

James Fenimore Cooper's The Last of the Mohicans is a historical novel taking place in 1757 during the French and Indian War as France and Great Britain battle for control of the North American colonies.
The Last of the Mohicans was one of the most popular in English in its time, although critics identified narrative flaws. This volume includes the Mark Twain critical review Fenimore Cooper's Literary Offenses.
James Fenimore Cooper was a popular American writer whose historical romances of frontier and Indian life in the early American days created a unique form of American literature.

James Fenimore Cooper (1789 - 1851) was a prolific and popular American writer of the early 19th century. His historical romances of frontier and Indian life in the early American days created a unique form of American literature. He lived most of his life in Cooperstown, New York, which was founded by his father William on property that he owned. Cooper was a lifelong member of the Episcopal Church and, in his later years, contributed generously to it.
Before embarking on his career as a writer, he served in the U.S. Navy as a midshipman, which greatly influenced many of his novels and other writings. The novel that launched his career was The Spy, a tale about counterespionage set during the Revolutionary War and published in 1821. He also wrote numerous sea stories and his best-known works are five historical novels of the frontier period known as the Leatherstocking Tales. Among naval historians, Cooper's works on the early U.S. Navy have been well received, but they were sometimes criticized by his contemporaries. Among his most famous works is the Romantic novel The Last of the Mohicans, often regarded as his masterpiece.