{"product_id":"james-fenimore-cooper-sea-tales-the-pilot-the-red-rover-library-of-america-9780940450707","title":"James Fenimore Cooper : Sea Tales : The Pilot \/ The Red Rover (Library of America)","description":"\u003cp\u003eIn The Pilot (1824) and The Red Rover (1828)  James Fenimore Cooper invented a new literary genre: the sea novel. Collected here in a single Library of America volume  they are among his finest works. Bold  vigorous  original  each is a tale of high adventure that vividly captures the majesty and power of the seafaring life.  Cooper drew on his direct knowledge of ships and sailors to present a truer picture of life on the sea than had ever before achieved in literature. As a boy of seventeen he had sailed before the mast on a merchantman bound from New York to London and then to Spain. On board he experienced the life of a common seaman  learned the craft of sailing  encountered terrifying storms  was chased by pirates  and watched the impressment of crew members by a British man-of-war. He later served as an officer in the United States Navy.  The Pilot is loosely based upon stories of John Paul Joness daring hit-and-run tactics during the Revolutionary War. The shadowy hero  modeled on Jones  leads a squadron of the infant American navy in a series of raids on the English coast  braving fierce storms and the guns of hostile warships  yet never revealing his identity. In this novel Cooper introduced the character of the old salt  the seasoned deckhand happy only aboard ship. Long Tom Coffin  with his briny conversation and shrewd nautical advice  is the first of Coopers memorable portraits of common seaman.  A ghostly ship  an uncanny hero  a heroine kidnapped by pirates  revelations of mistaken identity  and the reunion of long-lost relativesscenes of romance and adventure fill the pages of The Red Rover  Coopers most theatrical novel. Set in the mid-eighteenth century  the tale recounts the exploits of a noble outcast and visionary who foresees Americas destiny as a sovereign nation. Forced into a life of piracy  the Rover conducts his private war of independence in a story that equates the free and daring life with the American dream of self-reliance and liberty from British rule.  LIBRARY OF AMERICA is an independent nonprofit cultural organization founded in 1979 to preserve our nations literary heritage by publishing  and keeping permanently in print  Americas best and most significant writing. The Library of America series includes more than 300 volumes to date  authoritative editions that average 1 000 pages in length  feature cloth covers  sewn bindings  and ribbon markers  and are printed on premium acid-free paper that will last for centuries.\u003c\/p\u003e","brand":"My Store","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":45953169981493,"sku":"ByrdShop_0940450704","price":24.59,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0627\/8139\/0901\/files\/9780940450707.jpg?v=1788180602","url":"https:\/\/atxbooks.com\/products\/james-fenimore-cooper-sea-tales-the-pilot-the-red-rover-library-of-america-9780940450707","provider":"ATX Books","version":"1.0","type":"link"}