Eckert based much of this book on his studies of the exhaustive Draper interviews. He elegantly weaves the history together in a narrative that is hard to put down. Daniel Boone is here, but I think Simon Kenton and Techumseh play a much more vital role. Eckert pulls together the entire history of the settlement of Ohio, West(ern) Virginia, and Kentucky. There is a small section of this story that has turned out to be historically inaccurate. In a later book, "A Sorrow in Our Heart" Eckert points out the error, explains the source of the problem, and corrects it. My point is that this meticulous historian was not afraid to recognize and correct his own mistake. Anyone interested in the history of settlement of the Northwest Territory will be completely swept up in this epic narrative. I have the paperback, but I just purchased the hardcover edition. This book is worth keeping for a long time!