What do you think?
Rate this book
Homeward Bound #1
Homeward Bound
This eBook features the unabridged text of ‘Homeward Bound by James Fenimore Cooper - Delphi Classics (Illustrated)’ from the bestselling edition of ‘The Complete Works of James Fenimore Cooper’.
Having established their name as the leading publisher of classic literature and art, Delphi Classics produce publications that are individually crafted with superior formatting, while introducing many rare texts for the first time in digital print. The Delphi Classics edition of Cooper includes original annotations and illustrations relating to the life and works of the author, as well as individual tables of contents, allowing you to navigate eBooks quickly and easily.
eBook features:* The complete unabridged text of ‘Homeward Bound by James Fenimore Cooper - Delphi Classics (Illustrated)’* Beautifully illustrated with images related to Cooper’s works* Individual contents table, allowing easy navigation around the eBook* Excellent formatting of the text336 pages, Paperback
Published June 20, 2006
12 people are currently reading
111 people want to read
About the author
James Fenimore Cooper
4,646 books1,118 followersJames Fenimore Cooper was a popular and prolific American writer. He is best known for his historical novel The Last of the Mohicans, one of the Leatherstocking Tales stories, and he also wrote political fiction, maritime fiction, travelogues, and essays on the American politics of the time. His daughter Susan Fenimore Cooper was also a writer.
Series:
* The Leatherstocking Tales
* The Littlepage Manuscripts
* Afloat and Ashore
* Homeward Bound
Series:
* The Leatherstocking Tales
* The Littlepage Manuscripts
* Afloat and Ashore
* Homeward Bound
Ratings & Reviews
Friends & Following
Create a free account to discover what your friends think of this book!
Community Reviews
Displaying 1 - 4 of 4 reviews
February 4, 2018
Apparently, James Fenimore Cooper didn't know how to keep a novel short and snappy, and this one is no exception, with the sequel a continuation of the story. Although you could read this book in isolation and be entertained, you'll be left wanting at the end because-it's only half the story, albeit a good half.
There is plenty of action, studies of human nature, political opinings, tragedy, elation and drama, all couched in a sea tale that is standard Cooper fare, which, in my opinion, is quite remarkable, if not highly improbable at critical points. But, the scenarios that Cooper takes us through are not so ridiculous that you can't suspend judgment and just enjoy the story.
The packet Montauk is outbound from London to America, still seen in the day as a barbaric outpost full of knaves that don't know their place in the British empire. The discourse between the British and American passengers is prominent throughout the story.
The subtitle of this story is The Chase, and it begins right away when authorities attempt to retrieve a passenger, who, apparently owes some money to the father of his new bride. Instead of complying with the request, the captain flees the English coast, cutter in pursuit. They escape, and humiliatingly cast the two off the ship. The chase is on, and despite the nautical jargon that is a vexing trademark of Cooper's sea tales, the descriptions are still palpable. Archaic language and slang make this a slow read, in addition to the English diction, but then, this type of book was not made for skimming, evidenced by the fact that it's only half the book. Your patience will be rewarded though, and on the flip side, your skimming may leave you disappointed.
The book focuses more on the interactions of the passengers, with the journey of the ship as a backdrop. Is it just that, or an allegorical study of human nature? We have the distinguished Mr. Effingham, decidedly European in manners, but with his heart strings attached firmly to America. His cousin John, the ascerbic uncle of the lovely Eve, although born in America, has spent her life in Europe. We have the mysterious suitors of Eve, mysterious in that their identities are initially suspect. Then there is the captain, a grizzled, old school mariner, who chain smokes and isn't afraid of offending anybody. Then there is the pusillanimous Mr. Dodge, who we could consider self serving journalist who is as phony as the journalists of today. Some things never change. Saunders and toast, the galley men, pride themselves on propriety of their manner and speech, despite their African heritage.
Thanks to a monster storm that rocked the Montauk, a good portion of the book was spent on the African coast, running across barbarian land pirates that had no relation to poor Saunders. The impending doom fell heavily on the fate of foxy Eve; they all knew what the barbarians would do to her, although her nanny (eh, they all had servants), through ignorance or hope against hope focused on a more civilized outcome. I was of the opinion of the rest of them; they were going to tear Eve apart. Fictional as these characters are, the thought of it bothered me profoundly. She was so sweet innocent, and the filthy barbarians were...
They were all in a tizzy over what would become of Eve, but as for the other women, not so much. A barbarian is a barbarian, and they would no doubt have been ravaged as well...The scenes were riveting, although...we have to suspend believability that a handful of mariners kicked that kind of hellacious ass. But, the descriptions were top notch, with an exceptional scene where Blunt navigates in total darkness. Better you read it then have me attempt to describe it.
There is a bit of humor as well, Cooper style of course, where they screw with the self serving Dodge much to his ignorance.
If there any demerits for this book, I have to say the French (as Eve's governess was a Parisian), became a little annoying. Of course, if you speak or read French, it might not have been an issue. And always the nautical terms. I can live with that though. It's a sea tale; there will be nautical terms. Other than that, volume 1 gets a 4 star from me.
There is plenty of action, studies of human nature, political opinings, tragedy, elation and drama, all couched in a sea tale that is standard Cooper fare, which, in my opinion, is quite remarkable, if not highly improbable at critical points. But, the scenarios that Cooper takes us through are not so ridiculous that you can't suspend judgment and just enjoy the story.
The packet Montauk is outbound from London to America, still seen in the day as a barbaric outpost full of knaves that don't know their place in the British empire. The discourse between the British and American passengers is prominent throughout the story.
The subtitle of this story is The Chase, and it begins right away when authorities attempt to retrieve a passenger, who, apparently owes some money to the father of his new bride. Instead of complying with the request, the captain flees the English coast, cutter in pursuit. They escape, and humiliatingly cast the two off the ship. The chase is on, and despite the nautical jargon that is a vexing trademark of Cooper's sea tales, the descriptions are still palpable. Archaic language and slang make this a slow read, in addition to the English diction, but then, this type of book was not made for skimming, evidenced by the fact that it's only half the book. Your patience will be rewarded though, and on the flip side, your skimming may leave you disappointed.
The book focuses more on the interactions of the passengers, with the journey of the ship as a backdrop. Is it just that, or an allegorical study of human nature? We have the distinguished Mr. Effingham, decidedly European in manners, but with his heart strings attached firmly to America. His cousin John, the ascerbic uncle of the lovely Eve, although born in America, has spent her life in Europe. We have the mysterious suitors of Eve, mysterious in that their identities are initially suspect. Then there is the captain, a grizzled, old school mariner, who chain smokes and isn't afraid of offending anybody. Then there is the pusillanimous Mr. Dodge, who we could consider self serving journalist who is as phony as the journalists of today. Some things never change. Saunders and toast, the galley men, pride themselves on propriety of their manner and speech, despite their African heritage.
Thanks to a monster storm that rocked the Montauk, a good portion of the book was spent on the African coast, running across barbarian land pirates that had no relation to poor Saunders. The impending doom fell heavily on the fate of foxy Eve; they all knew what the barbarians would do to her, although her nanny (eh, they all had servants), through ignorance or hope against hope focused on a more civilized outcome. I was of the opinion of the rest of them; they were going to tear Eve apart. Fictional as these characters are, the thought of it bothered me profoundly. She was so sweet innocent, and the filthy barbarians were...
They were all in a tizzy over what would become of Eve, but as for the other women, not so much. A barbarian is a barbarian, and they would no doubt have been ravaged as well...The scenes were riveting, although...we have to suspend believability that a handful of mariners kicked that kind of hellacious ass. But, the descriptions were top notch, with an exceptional scene where Blunt navigates in total darkness. Better you read it then have me attempt to describe it.
There is a bit of humor as well, Cooper style of course, where they screw with the self serving Dodge much to his ignorance.
If there any demerits for this book, I have to say the French (as Eve's governess was a Parisian), became a little annoying. Of course, if you speak or read French, it might not have been an issue. And always the nautical terms. I can live with that though. It's a sea tale; there will be nautical terms. Other than that, volume 1 gets a 4 star from me.
May 22, 2024
There’s an absolutely wild range of subjects in this book. Some of it was awful and some of it was great so I just picked a middle rating to be the average.
January 16, 2011
A few wealthy Brits and Americans set sail from London to New York in 1835. Their small ship goes astray which leads to harrowing adventures on the African coast. Some great characters, especially Captain Truck and Jack Effingham. A fun read with a lot of tense excitement--typical Cooper dramatics.
January 16, 2013
read on ipad so it is perhaps why i did not like it greatly
Displaying 1 - 4 of 4 reviews