The Taking of Jemima Boone by Matthew Pearl

This is Matthew Pearl's first foray into non-fiction but he is at heart a storyteller so the characters and the drama are foremost backed up by facts and background information making it easily readable.
We all think we know Daniel Boone or at least the larger than life bear wrestling pioneer and the stuff of legend. This is the story of someone who is desperate to to claim pristine land for his family and generations to come, one step ahead of the politics and crowds back east. He has seen both sides of the native people and the politics and wants nothing to do with it. While on an outing away from the safe walls of the fort, Jemima Boone and a few girls are grabbed by a Cherokee raiding party and kidnapped. Jemima is her father's daughter and cleverly manages to keep a cool head allowing her dad and the others to catch up and rescue them. This would be a short tale if it ended with her safe return but instead this action opens up a hornet's nest between the settlers and the native population.
Murders occur on both sides and with the Revolutionary War beginning, more people get involved as the situation spins out of control. I especially enjoyed learning about the native practice of taking hostages from their enemy and adopting them into the tribe to replace those family members killed. This seemed like such a peaceful and smart practice and one not practiced by our side. Daniel Boone knew this firsthand and found it difficult to straddle both sides. There is something for everyone - history, politics, high adventure and a birdseye view of a part of history that has been kept out of the schoolbooks.  4 stars