Daugherty's biography breathes life into the figure of Daniel Boone, casting him as a shining beacon of individual potential and accomplishment. The narrative paints Boone as the epitome of pioneer virtues, attributing his triumphs to unwavering American ideals. Devoid of both formal education and financial wealth, Boone achieves remarkable feats through sheer personal merit. His survival in the relentless wilderness is a testament to his keen intelligence, boundless resourcefulness, unyielding courage, and fierce independence. Boone's natural leadership skills earn him his neighbors' trust, leading to his election to the Virginia legislature, and the Spanish commandant's commissioning of him as a magistrate. Driven by a profound sense of duty towards others, Boone embarks on treacherous journeys to rescue fellow explorers and alert settlers to looming Native American threats. Daugherty's portrayal underscores Boone's fairness and respect towards adversaries, whether they be formidable Native Americans or the untamed forces of nature. The Shawnee, upon capturing Boone, grow so fond of him that Chief Black Fish embraces him as a son.

Despite Boone's legendary status, revered even by his contemporaries as a near-mythical hero, Daugherty does not shy away from highlighting his flaws. Boone's carelessness and impatience lead him to flout numerous restrictions, from spelling conventions to land-grant laws, resulting in costly consequences: the eventual loss of all his land in Kentucky and Missouri. A paradox emerges in Boone's destructive tendencies, which stand in stark contrast to his professed love for nature. Alongside his friend, John James Audubon, Boone indulges in "barking" squirrels for sport, an episode Daugherty wryly notes as "fun for everybody but the squirrels." Boone's relentless pursuit to open the wilderness to settlers inadvertently contributes to its destruction. As soon as settlers gather in large numbers, he finds solace only in pushing further into untamed lands.

The biography comes alive through vivid depictions of various historical figures intertwined with Boone's journey. Featured frontiersmen include the likes of George Rogers Clark, Simon Kenton, and the "long hunter" John Finley, whose tales of Kentucky's wild allure Boone into new endeavors. Daugherty acknowledges the fierce defense mounted by the Cherokee and Shawnee against white settlers, yet he also celebrates the nobility and cunning of leaders such as Cornstalk and Black Fish. British generals like Hamilton and Tarleton are portrayed with a humane touch, while even the flawed General William Braddock is treated with a gentle hand. However, Daugherty reserves his sternest censure for renegades like Girty and McKee, who flagrantly disregard both the letter and the spirit of the law.

The narrative offers scant glimpses into Boone's familial backdrop. Boone's father, Squire Boone, a skilled blacksmith and devout Quaker, shares a hint of Daniel's adventurous nature as he relocates his family from Pennsylvania to North Carolina's Yadkin Valley. Boone's brothers, Squire and Edward, display their own frontiersman grit, accompanying him on extensive hunts into Kentucky. While Boone's wife, Rebecca Bryan, remains largely in the shadows, their children—James, Israel, and Jemima—are brought to the forefront. Tragically, despite their prowess, James and Israel fall to Native American attacks. Jemima, however, showcases her father's cleverness by outwitting her captors and leaving a trail for her rescuers.

The author extols the valor, inventiveness, and reverence for the natural world that he believes defined the American frontier's pioneers, while lamenting a perceived erosion of these values in twentieth-century America. Troubled by the vandalism and litter that mar historic sites, Daugherty implores readers to nurture an appreciation for the heroes and deeds of yesteryears.