OR, THE LITTLEPAGE MANUSCRIPTS
A TALE OF THE COLONY
Published in 1845, this novel continues Cooper’s new-found enthusiasm for first-person narration, which he had also employed in the two novels immediately preceding this one. This time, the narrator is Cornelius Littlepage (known as Corny) of Satanstoe, New York – the intriguing name deriving from a legend that explains the distinctive shape of the peninsula as having being formed by the imprint of Satan’s toe. Corny and his friend Dirck are the protagonists of the novel, which centres on life in New York State roughly a hundred years before the novel’s publication.
The story relates Corny and Dirck’s experiences in a number of locations, beginning in New York City and progress gradually through a series of less civilised locales before ending up in the wilderness of the North. Along the way they face numerous exciting challenges, including an encounter with French troops at Fort Ticonderoga and a skirmish with Huron Indians, before finally returning to New York City and their families.