The Last of the Mohicans Lea, of Philadelphia. According to Susan Cooper, its success was "greater than that of any previous book from the same pen" and "in Europe the book produced quite a startling effect." Cooper's novels were popular, but reviewers were often critical, or dismissive. For example, the reviewer of the "London Magazine" (May 1826) described the novel as "clearly by much the worst of Mr Cooper's performances." Mark Twain notably derided the author in his essay "Fenimore Cooper's Literary Offenses", published in "North American Review" (July 1895). Twain complained that Cooper lacked a variety of style and was overly wordy. In the
The Last of the Mohicans and the Mahican of upstate New York. The popularity of Cooper's book helped spread the confusion. In the period when Cooper was writing, deputations from the Western tribes frequently traveled through the region along the Mohawk River, on their way to New York or Washington, D.C. He made a point of visiting these parties as they passed through Albany and New York. On several occasions, he followed them all the way to Washington to observe them for longer. He also talked to the military officers and interpreters who accompanied them. The novel was first published in 1826 by Carey &