Relates the adventures of woodsman Natty Bumppo in upper New York State at the time of the Iroquois wars.

In the summer of 1754, deep in the wilderness of western Pennsylvania, a very young George Washington suffered his first military defeat, and a centuries-old feud between Great Britain and France was rekindled. The war that followed, which one historian called truly the first world war, would decide the fate of the entire North American continent--not just between Great Britain and France, but for the Spanish and the Native Americans as well. Fought...

SUMMARY: A historical novel based on an actual narrative. In 1754, on the brink of the French and Indian war, young Miriam Willard and her older sister's family are captured in an Indian raid on Charleston, N.H., where they are held for ransom.

In this vivid and compelling narrative, the Seven Years' War-long seen as a mere backdrop to the American Revolution-takes on a whole new significance. Relating the history of the war as it developed, Anderson shows how the complex array of forces brought into conflict helped both to create Britain's empire and to sow the seeds of its eventual dissolution. Beginning with a skirmish in the Pennsylvania backcountry involving an inexperienced George...