A collection of ten essays that offers insights into the five Leather-Stocking Tales: ""The Pioneers"" (1823), ""The Last of the Mohicans"" (1826), ""The Prairie"" (1827), ""The Pathfinder"" (1840), and ""The Deerslayer"" (1841). It also addresses such issues as race, gender, and ethnicity in Cooper's world and their relationship to ours.