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joelkarpowitz's review against another edition
4.0
Slow going but I liked it. Interesting look at the era through the eyes of the romantics. I think I still prefer the movie, but overall an enjoyable read.
tayboud's review against another edition
adventurous
emotional
informative
inspiring
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
5.0
musicdeepdive's review against another edition
3.5
Revolutionary depictions of Native Americans for the time, particularly on a sympathetic level. Cooper is a bit of a monotonous writer, and the narrative can get held up for extended periods of time, but it's certainly very unlike anything else I've read in this dive to this point.
jdintr's review against another edition
Preparing for a trip to upstate New York, I read this book for the scenery, and it didn't disappoint. It surrounds the reader with the scenery of the Catskills, at a time in North America when any place more than 20 miles from the coast or a major waterway was deep wilderness.
The thick woods, filled with the sounds of wildlife and signs of Indians, are what I'll remember from this book. The characters? Well, there are great male leads in Hawkeye, Uncas and Chingachook and a cruel villain in Magua. The girls never materialize, unfortunately--Alice spends most of the key moments in a swoon; Cora...well, I'll take Cooper's word about her because she doesn't do much.
In sum, this is a fun peek into American history, and early taste of the action hero genre, and a tense romp through a the lost wondrous forests of New York.
The thick woods, filled with the sounds of wildlife and signs of Indians, are what I'll remember from this book. The characters? Well, there are great male leads in Hawkeye, Uncas and Chingachook and a cruel villain in Magua. The girls never materialize, unfortunately--Alice spends most of the key moments in a swoon; Cora...well, I'll take Cooper's word about her because she doesn't do much.
In sum, this is a fun peek into American history, and early taste of the action hero genre, and a tense romp through a the lost wondrous forests of New York.
theimaginaryworldoffaith's review against another edition
4.0
Finalmente l'ho finito, non male come libro e molto belle le descrizioni della natura (ammetto che sono leggermente noiosotte).
Come molti, credo, ho visto prima il film e devo dire che la storia è stata un po'(molto) cambiata (nel film muoiono tre personaggi che nel libro non si avvicinano minimamente alla morte e anche la storia d'amore è un po' differente), però è più avvincente e i combattimenti sono resi meglio che nel libro. Devo dire che il libro mi ha preso a partire dal capitolo quinto, dove inizia l'avventura contro Magua, fino all'ultimo, dove lo ammetto ho versato qualche lacrima:), nel complesso un bel libro, le descrizioni sono molto dettagliate e "spazia tra i grandi temi attuali, dal razzismo alla politica, all'amore, al tradimento, alla solidarietà tra uomini diversi. E' una lezione di vita che, sorgendo da un secolo e da un mondo scomparsi, resta moderna e attraente come poche altre storie per giovani e per adulti."(tratta dalla trama libro)
Come molti, credo, ho visto prima il film e devo dire che la storia è stata un po'(molto) cambiata (nel film muoiono tre personaggi che nel libro non si avvicinano minimamente alla morte e anche la storia d'amore è un po' differente), però è più avvincente e i combattimenti sono resi meglio che nel libro. Devo dire che il libro mi ha preso a partire dal capitolo quinto, dove inizia l'avventura contro Magua, fino all'ultimo, dove lo ammetto ho versato qualche lacrima:), nel complesso un bel libro, le descrizioni sono molto dettagliate e "spazia tra i grandi temi attuali, dal razzismo alla politica, all'amore, al tradimento, alla solidarietà tra uomini diversi. E' una lezione di vita che, sorgendo da un secolo e da un mondo scomparsi, resta moderna e attraente come poche altre storie per giovani e per adulti."(tratta dalla trama libro)
hitanne47's review against another edition
1.0
This book is one of the most egregious pieces of imperialist garbage I’ve ever read in my life. There was almost nothing to enjoy. Cooper’s prose is painfully slow and not interesting. The plot almost completely revolves around characters being repeatedly captured and the others going to rescue them. None of the characters are the least bit interesting except for David Gamut who is constantly forgotten about in favor of Hawkeye and Heyward (the two white characters in a book titled after a fictional native tribe). Every native character is a stereotype so awful you want to laugh at it before you remember this story was written by an old white dude whose work was actively reinforcing the racism of his time. The only thing I’d hazard to compliment is Cooper’s knowledge and application of historical events to the story, but his neglectful misunderstanding of indigenous culture is so awful it doesn’t even matter. I’d struggle to believe that even people in 1826 found this interesting. If I were alive then I’d surely rather suffer smallpox than read a paragraph of this shit.
kaitdoud's review against another edition
3.0
It could have been much shorter in my opinion, but I am glad I read it all the same.
fdr_girl's review against another edition
3.0
i’m so torn about what to say, this book has been on my ‘to read list’ since uni, when it was recommended by a lecturer ... i’m glad I finally got around to it but heck
first it took me a while to get into it, the descriptive passages are so in depth it’s a weird style of writing to wrap your head around. also the characters all have like five names which was super confusing to begin with but once I figured them out it was all good. who doesn’t love a good nickname or four.
it was hella racist. like?? horrid tbqh. but then i guess that’s bc of when it was written etc so yuck but there’s a reason.
idk once the story passed on to Heyward, Hawk-Eye and Uncas I enjoyed it a Lot more and actually sped through it pretty fast ... pretty annoyed at Alice at the end what a cow 🤷🏻♀️
first it took me a while to get into it, the descriptive passages are so in depth it’s a weird style of writing to wrap your head around. also the characters all have like five names which was super confusing to begin with but once I figured them out it was all good. who doesn’t love a good nickname or four.
it was hella racist. like?? horrid tbqh. but then i guess that’s bc of when it was written etc so yuck but there’s a reason.
idk once the story passed on to Heyward, Hawk-Eye and Uncas I enjoyed it a Lot more and actually sped through it pretty fast ... pretty annoyed at Alice at the end what a cow 🤷🏻♀️
rebeeps's review against another edition
adventurous
sad
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
4.0
mnboyer's review against another edition
4.0
A good source of the "vanishing Indian" motif. It tends to fall into this romantic notion of a white-man that becomes an Indian by forsaking his identity, living in the woods with other Indians, and then he's actually the one that comes through to save everyone. For the times, this made sense. In the revisionist western film era (the film adaptation is average) this is a must-have for the big screen. Natty is not always perfectly developed as a character--but is by far more interesting than other characters of the time period.
Overall, has a lot of good plot, narration, setting, etc. Also could be read if you are interested in adaptation from book to film. The ending will hit you if you take it in.
Historical note: There are still Mohican Indians. Cooper wanted to use "Mohegan" but that was a mess up on his part. Key thing here, the Indians have not vanished.
Overall, has a lot of good plot, narration, setting, etc. Also could be read if you are interested in adaptation from book to film. The ending will hit you if you take it in.
Historical note: There are still Mohican Indians. Cooper wanted to use "Mohegan" but that was a mess up on his part. Key thing here, the Indians have not vanished.