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201st out of 325 books
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The Frontiersmen: A Narrative (Winning of America #1)
Against the background of such names as George Rogers Clark, Daniel Boone. Arthur St. Clair, Anthony Wayne, Simon Girty, and William Henry Harrison, Eckert has recreated the life of one of America's most outstanding heroes, Simon Kenton. Kenton's role in opening the Northwest Territory to settlement more than rivaled that of his friend Daniel Boone. By his eighteenth birth...more
Paperback, 626 pages
Published
May 1st 2001
by Jesse Stuart Foundation
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One of the best written historical novels about the settling of the American "West" at the time of the Revolutionary War. Western Ohio that is.
I rated The Frontiersmen a five star because it changed my view of American history. Eckert is a master at transporting the reader back to a historical moment, creating a good story around the facts, and making the reader care. This book left me in awe of our ancestors' ability to survive. This was a ruthless time and both White...more
I rated The Frontiersmen a five star because it changed my view of American history. Eckert is a master at transporting the reader back to a historical moment, creating a good story around the facts, and making the reader care. This book left me in awe of our ancestors' ability to survive. This was a ruthless time and both White...more
You can't mention The Frontiersman, or any of Allan W. Eckert's Winning of America Series, without noting its unique species: history-in-the-form-of-a-novel. It is not, repeat not, historical fiction. Instead, as Eckert takes pains to point out in his forward, every event described in the book actually occurred in the manner described. Every word used in dialogue comes from primary sources: journals, newspapers, diaries, etc.
What makes this book novelistic is that Eckert has taken t...more
What makes this book novelistic is that Eckert has taken t...more
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Simon Kenton, what a hunk. All I can say is that Ohio is a sweet place to grow up and learn about history. This books is a fictional retelling of the history of wait, I forget, oh yeah, frontiersmen in Ohio. Written by a Buckeye, what's cool is that the events and places mentioned are still existing and visit-able. Yes I know that's not a word. Pretty factual hardcore writing, but it's a goodie.
This is a revisit to my childhood. I had to read this in middle school over the summer. At the time I hated it because of its sheer size (600+ pages). But, upon reading it as an adult, I thoroughly enjoyed it. The Frontiersmen chronicles the life of Simon Kenton (a Kentucky frontiersman) and Tecumseh (the leader of the Shawnee) and the events surrounding the white expansion into what is now known as Ohio and Kentucky. Unlike many historical books, Eckert uses various resources, journals, ne...more
Amazing historical narrative. Never a dull moment, and good grief, is it brutally honest! The bloodiest book I have EVER read. I recommend this one with extreme reservation. Not many can stomach this, and the hardest part is it's all true. It's definitely refreshing to read after the uber-romanticization that is so characteristic of reactionary historial revisionism lately. Liberal historians would have us believe that Indians are entirely infallible, and while the burden of judgment would ...more
Another in the series of books from Allan W. Eckert about the formative period of the United States between the French and Indian War and the War of 1812. Simon Kenton and Tecumseh are the central figures in a meticulously researched historical novel, a genre Eckert has mastered.
This is the story of Simon Kenton and Tecumseh written in a very compelling and factual way with a wonderful narrative element. Anyone who lives in the Ohio Valley will be amazed by who came before us.
I've read the 'Frontiersmen' three or four times; it's a magnificent book. Be that as it may, I do find one shortcoming regarding Eckert's narrative. In the introduction, the author states that his book is fact, not fiction. Unfortunately, this is not entirely correct. Without a doubt, Eckert dramatizes a lot of the events that occurred during the time period in which 'The Frontiersmen' takes place. Too, he writes convincingly about a few incidents that have no basis for historical accuracy...more
I was looking for a nonfiction book for my book group. It is not my usual reading, but I've been caught up in the 1700's exploration and indian wars from the very beginning. My ancestors settled in Kentucky in the midst of this book and the descriptions and events are helping to picture more fully what they did. Though only about a 1/3 through this book, I am thoroughly enjoying the narrative. My understanding of the people, events and times is growing and I am well on the way to being a fan...more
The best book about native americans I have ever read. A must read for those that have any interest in Native Americans especially Ohio natives.
This book was recommended by a friend at work. I think the book was more enjoyable to be because I have lived in southern and central Ohio all of my life and I can relate to where all of the story takes place. Even though some of the book may be exaggerated because of lack of written history or the authors choice to bring a point across, it was full of facts that helped explain how the northwest territory came to be and the hardships the settlers had to go through. I had a hard time putting the ...more
Hands-down my favorite book that I've ever read. Tells the stories of Tecumseh, Blue Jacket, Simon Kenton, and many others. As a reader living in Ohio, I knew the locations of where many of the events in this book took place, and I could honestly put myself in that exact place at that exact moment in history! The author went to great lengths to accurately retell historical events from an unbiased point of view. He sided with neither Native Americans, nor settlers while telling these factual ...more
Admittedly, I have not finished reading this book. However, I am all but certain that this book will go in the ranks of books, like the novel 1984, that I have decided never to complete. I was over a third of the way through the book before making that decision, and I wish that I had decided it before I read that final chapter. I now have images in my mind of the slow torture (by piercing, by burning, by stoning, etc.) that one frontiersman endured at the hands of his Native American captors. Th...more
My earliest writing aspirations were for a piece set in Michigan in the late 17th or early 18th century, with multiple POV's among both newly arrived Europeans and local Native Americans. They were largely due to the influence of Allan Eckert. I love all his work, and particularly this book, which I read first, at about age fifteen. It's mind-blowing, in scope, in detail, and in tension. It's too bad so few are aware of Simon Kenton, who should be mentioned in the same breath with Boone, Wayne, ...more
This is the 1st book I read of Allan Eckert's and it is the 1st one of the 6 book series. This book has piqued my interest in early american history even more than it was before I read it and it's also made me want to read the other 5 books. It can't be improved. It is very entertaining, a lot of depth to information and character, and well sourced to boot! Be entertained and learn something about United States history at the same time. It will be one that I read again.
I never, ever thought I would enjoy a book about Indians and Indian fighters – but yes, I believe I did: All 665 pages of it (including extensive chapter notes and index). I re-learned some things I very foggily remembered about America’s early history.
This book has many descriptive chapters about the brutal way the Indians massacred the early frontier families and an equal number of descriptions of the scalping and mutilation of Indians by the white invaders. The author takes great c...more
This book has many descriptive chapters about the brutal way the Indians massacred the early frontier families and an equal number of descriptions of the scalping and mutilation of Indians by the white invaders. The author takes great c...more
I'm a history freak and this non fiction account set in the Ohio & Kentucky territories (1755-1840) was most interesting. It's written in narrative form and is based upon the lives of the great Shawnee Chief Tecumseh and explorer, frontiersman, Indian fighter, homesteader, Simon Kenton. Jon and I have ancestors who homesteaded in Kentucky and Ohio so it was great to read about the struggles and confrontations that allowed them to do so.
Spectacular. Eye opener to the 19th century world in places we now know as Ohio and Kentucky. You will never think of these two places the same or mess with anyone from these two states. Really straightens out your understanding of white people moving west and encountering native Americans. Very exciting read and its all true! Might be the best book I have ever read.
Great local history of Kentucky and Southwest, Ohio. Written like a novel, but a true story. 580 pages of early Kentucky and Ohio history. It is a fictionalized account (but closely based on primary sources) of the life of Simon Kenton and Tecumseh. This was a contemporary of Daniel Boone, General Anthony Wayne. Born in 1755 in Virginia and died around 1835 in Ohio. He was one of the first explorers of the Kentucky lands. Interesting facts about the development of Kentucky and Oh...more
The Frontiersmen provides the factual history of the opening for white settlers of territories that would become the states of Kentucky, Ohio and Indiana in the United States of America in a readable narrative form. Limiting the history to the lifespan of Simon Kenton gives this book a focus and still allows stories about Daniel Boone, George Rogers Clark, Simon Girty, Tecumseh, the Prophet and Blue Jacket to be told. Military adventures of Arthur St. Clair, Mad Anthony Wayne, William Henry Ha...more
This series about the "Winning of America" from the native Indians is very close to being non-fiction. It is my favorite series about American history. I have the complete hardbound set all autographed by Mr. Eckert. Again, these should be required reading. He does a good job of representing both sides of this tragic struggle.
Holy cow what a towering character, Simon Kenton, the Frontiersman. He was a contemporary of Daniel Boone and one of the first white man in the Ohio River valley, living and fighting Indians in Kentucky and Ohio. As I got to half way thru this book, I broke down and looked him up on Wikipedia. He indeed was a real person. His capture and degradation by being made to run 9 gauntlets, "Bahdler" comes across as something of a superman. I gather he was rather enormous in size for that time...more
Excellent book as is the entire series and the companion book- That Dark and Bloody River: Chronicles of the Ohio River Valley, and his book about Tecumseh - A Sorrow in Our Heart: The Life of Tecumseh. They're basically history books written in the form of a novel.
The first book in Eckert's series "The Winning of America." Together with the other volumns, "Wilderness Empire, The Conquerors, Wilderness War, Gateway to Empire and Twilight of Empire" constitute one of the finest American histories ever written.
His best book in a series of historical novels showing the way we wrested control of the land from the Indians. We written and very graphic in descriptions of the atrocities on both sides and characters that come alive on the pages.
An excellent representation of the American frontier prior to the American Revolution. This book passionately details the early settler of Appalachia and give both cause and effect of the events that shaped early American life.
The Native Americans of Ohio could be brutal and cruel at times (though they did not think of themselves this way). Tecumseh, in asking his tribesmen to forswear torture, became a sort of former-day Martin Luther King, Jr.
A fictional retelling of factual events. This book will always be a favorite of mine. The best part about this book is the fact that Simon Kenton, Daniel Boone, Tecumseh, Blue Jacket and other famous Americans lallygag around in my backyard throughout the stories. Showing up throughout the book are places familiar to me: Red River Gorge, Licking River, Ohio River and Valley, etc. I only wish that "The Frontiersmen" had more maps of the areas they wander.
Cyndi if you're readin...more
Cyndi if you're readin...more
I loved the history of this book. It was a little too detailed for my taste, but the history takes place literally right outside the door of my house, which made it fascinating.
Ever hear of Simon Kenton? I hadn't, but I learned from this book that he was a super hero in the early settlement of Ohio and Kentucky. Surpassed Daniel Boone, who apparently had a better PR man, in heroic deeds and outrageous bravery. He was definitely a man to be reckoned with whether you were a white settler or American Indian.
Also didn't know that the Kentucky territory was an idyllic land and game preserve for many Indian tribes. No tribe lived in that territory. Kentucky ...more
Also didn't know that the Kentucky territory was an idyllic land and game preserve for many Indian tribes. No tribe lived in that territory. Kentucky ...more
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Allan W. Eckert was an American historian, historical novelist, and naturalist.
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