Revenge Book

I have seen reviews of this book that describe it as a clunker by James Fenimore Cooper, and if that be possible, then this indeed lives up to the billing. Cooper attempts to opine on the defects of American society in her childhood by making comparisons with European society, but unwittingly exposes the shortcomings of that continent, if indeed, his experience is representative of a group of sovereign countries.

This is the sequel to Homeward Bound, a book chock full of adventure and drama (as most Cooper tales are), but unlike Afloat and Ashore and its sequel Miles Wallingford, this does not pick up where the prequel left off. It is a story unto its own-if it could be considered a story as such, as it does not have a plot per se, but a central theme of the condition of American society. Action is lacking as well-as a matter of fact, there is no action at all. It is a very long treatise of Cooper's abhorrence of American provincialism, a crude closemindedness that apparently didn't exist in Europe at that time. When he himself wasn't railing against the the politics, the manners, the press, the dress and the customs, he had the characters in the story do it for him. Not being a student of 1820's-1830's American-Euro history, he may be making valid claims, but his ire was directed at America, with occasional feeble attempts by his characters to fend off imperious European sentiment.

It seems as though Cooper is conflating the state of affairs in the provinces the characters visited to the country as a whole. Of course, all we see is the higher end of society, which was just as extreme a minority as it is today, maybe even moreso. They would not be representative of a society or a community-unless that's all you saw, all you associated with, and that was the case with the characters in the story. An example is when "The gang" goes to a ball and it centers around a belle, Miss Ring, who flaunts her ignorance and engages in gossip. Not sure if Cooper is pushing her as representative of American belles. Then there was the honorable Captain Truck (from the prequel), who is elevated to the rank of an English demi-god by the ignorant literati of American society, who, if you believe Cooper's descriptions, are nothing but a bunch of knuckle dragging buffoons. But even a man of limited education such as Truck recognized the ignorance of who he was dealing with and played them like a cheap violin.

But American provincial behavior was only a part of Cooper's wrath. As the gang steamed up the Hudson, they bitched about the architecture they saw along the shore, and even when they got to their country estate. Well, once you've gone Euro, you never go back. That seemed to have been the theme anyway. They sounded like a bunch of obnoxious tourists. "this sucks man, not like that cool European thing man..."

Cooper even bashes the July 4th celebration; maybe not appropriate for women to attend, horrible music (American, bad instruments and players don't you know), and the women "of that class" dressing above their station. Again, obnoxious. Not that his points aren't valid on it's own merits, but his class are just as repulsive in their own way. Yes, people want to be with their own kind, and the overlap has, and always will cause friction. Not sure you needed an entire book to make that point.

Towards the end we get a convoluted episode about Powis' (a hero from the prequel) family history, made even more convoluted by the fact that Cooper had the habit of engaging a character in a lenghthy discourse, either not identifying them until a later paragraph, or sometimes not at all. And the French...cost this book a full star. I understand that some of us urchins never had enough class to learn French, but Cooper sprinkles the book with vapid one-liners throughout anyway. Maybe he thought I would never get to this book. Turns out Powis is related to the girl he wants to marry, and as Cooper went through the details, I swear I heard banjos playing...

In the end, America was far too primitive for our heros and heroines, and they decided to hi-tail it back to Europe, although Cooper leaves open whether that is permanent or just a much needed societal shot in the arm. I thought of giving this book a two star rating, but after perusing some of the other books with that rating, I settled on three stars. A grudging three stars...