The Prairie

by James Fenimore Cooper

"The Prairie" by James Fenimore Cooper is a novel published in 1827. It follows Natty Bumppo, the legendary frontiersman now in his final year, wandering the vast American prairies shortly after the Louisiana Purchase. When he encounters a rough family of squatters fleeing the law with a kidnapped bride, the aging trapper must use his frontier wisdom to navigate dangerous situations involving hostile tribes, desperate rescues, and conflicting loyalties on the untamed western plains.