Among historians in Kentucky the name Thomas D. Clark is almost as important as Simon Kenton. Clark has had a remarkably long and fruitful career as a historian in Kentucky. Too many historians after a long career of teaching and writing history will retire into anonymity, but not Thomas Clark. Many years after the age when most people retire, Clark wrote a book about a frontiersman who first came into Kentucky when it was known as the Hostile West. This story of Kenton will not only come alive for adults, but could also be enjoyed by younger readers due to the audience that Clark had in mind when putting this history together. When first learning about the history of our nation, Kentucky students learn about the great military leaders of Virginia, and the men of the North East who dared to dream of being great political leaders, etc; It is hard to find a book that a young reader can sit down with and read about a person who will forever be known as a great Kentuckian. The life of Simon Kenton was not polished up by Clark and made into a politically correct story that will fit perfectly into our historical revisionistic modern textbooks. Clark doesn't cover up the fact that Kenton killed Indians, stole horses and guns, and took land away from people who certainly had rights to this beautiful hunting ground; this is REAL history, and it is written for an audience that may not otherwise hear this story. All young people, not only those who live in Kentucky, should learn about the life of Simon Kenton. Like Simon Kenton, Thomas D. Clark will forever be known as a great Kentuckian.