The Spy

By: James Fenimore Cooper

Narrated by: Jim Roberts

Length: 6 hrs and 24 mins

Publisher's summary

James Fenimore Cooper was America's first successful popular novelist. Son of the prominent federalist William Cooper, founder of the Cooperstown settlement, James was educated at Yale in preparation for a genteel life as a federalist gentleman. After his father's death in an 1809 duel, Cooper quickly squandered his inheritance, and at thirty was on the verge of bankruptcy. He turned to writing but his first book, Precaution (1820), was a failure. It did, however, receive some favorable reviews and he decided to try again. In searching for another topic, he remembered the story of a spy, which had been related to him by John Jay years before, recurred to his memory, and the surroundings of his home Westchester county, the debatable ground of both armies during almost the whole revolutionary period furnished a convenient stage. The Spy was the result, and during the winter of 1821-22 the American public awoke to the fact that it possessed a novelist of its own. The success of this book, which was unprecedented at the time in the meager annals of American literature, determined Cooper's career and he went on to write more than fifty novels.

©1982 Jimcin Recordings (P)1982 Jimcin Recordings

Critic reviews

"Written in 1821, this historical novel is Cooper's paean to the Revolutionary War, as protagonist Harry Birch finds himself wrongly accused of selling vital information to the British. The book incorporates several real characters, including George Washington." (Library Journal)

not complete

the audio books skips anywhere from paragraphs to whole pages not worth the buy. I recommend the other version of the audio book