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The Pilot  By  cover art

The Pilot

By: James Fenimore Cooper
Narrated by: Nick Sullivan
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Editorial reviews

This 1824 sea tale about the fictionalized exploits of real-life Revolutionary War hero John Paul Jones capitalized on James Fenimore Cooper's experience as a midshipman in the U.S. Navy. Though the audiobook showcases Cooper's extensive knowledge of sailors and the sea, the action takes place mostly on land - the northeastern coast of England, to be exact.

Enter award-winning voice actor Nick Sullivan, who can seamlessly swap English and Irish and American dialects as if he's a native of half a dozen countries. Sullivan has professionally recorded over 300 audiobook titles, and his expertise is evident here. The listener feels as though he's eavesdropping on a United Nations' worth of weathered seamen working at a 19th-century port.

Publisher's summary

The hero of The Pilot - modeled on John Paul Jones - leads the American Navy in dangerous raids on the English coast. James Fenimore Cooper's fourth novel, published in 1823, helped start the genre of sea novels. Cooper's other major works include the renowned Leatherstocking Tales: The Pioneers, The Last of the Mohicans, The Prarie, The Pathfinder, and The Deerslayer.

Public Domain (P)2010 Audible, Inc.

What listeners say about The Pilot

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  • Overall
    3 out of 5 stars
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    3 out of 5 stars
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    3 out of 5 stars

A historically significant, slow tale, read by someone who doesn't know the terminology

Interesting, since this novel helped define the genre of sea stories, it is, nevertheless, a dull tale in need of a good editor.

The narrator does a fair job with voices and inflection, but so mangles the ship and sailing terms I was literally laughing.

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  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    3 out of 5 stars
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    5 out of 5 stars

amazing story, but led not leed for leadline,

great descriptive life at sea.. I love the detail of life at sea and ship handling for the time period. 3 stars on the performance because I nearly destroyed my steering wheel in reflexive consternation each time the narrator said leedLine...and leed..... instead of ledline and led for leadline. It is made of lead. bonus points for leward instead of lee ward for leeward .

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  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    5 out of 5 stars
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    5 out of 5 stars

Love the exquisite mastery of language.

Having been acquainted with JFC only by film over the past many decades; “The Pilot” is the first of his works I have ever read, finished just now, via this audiobook production. I judge it to be one of the most thrilling and enjoyable books I’ve read to date; truly a classic of English language storytelling. It’s such a pleasure to read / listen to such language rarely heard nowadays; words rarely used in modern speech or print; but that still beckon with meaning in all their richness of expression. The narration rendered here took a few chapters to get used to; but soon became quite enjoyable and appropriate to the purpose. Five stars across the board.

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  • Overall
    2 out of 5 stars
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    5 out of 5 stars
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    1 out of 5 stars

The Literary Offenses

I should have listened to Mark Twain. Cooper’s narrative and verbiage is insufferable. The whale scene put into the narrative in the middle of a naval battle is a stark example.

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