Young Noah Webster was slim, red-haired, and quick-tempered but most of all he was inquisitive. There was no telling what he might do to find out when, why, where, or how something had happened.

He was most inquisitive about words. For some reason, words were important to him. They were exciting and strange, and he wanted to learn as much about them as he could.

There was never a dull moment for Noah in those days before the Revolutionary War. This was especially true after Geoffry Ross came to visit his uncle Robert Nolan. Robert Nolan ran the mill on Noyes River near Webster Hill Farm, where Noah lived.

At first Noah thought Geoffry was "uppity-ish," and Geoffry thought Noah was a showoff. After they "hit the dirt" in a patriotic fight, however, both changed their minds and they became close friends.

Each knew things which the other was glad to learn. They traded knowledge about books, about farming, and about the wild animals that lived in the woods and fields around Webster Hill Farm. They collected plants, roots, and flowers for Mrs. Webster to use in making her homemade medicines.

Even after Geoffry returned to Boston, he and Noah remained good friends. Noah was visiting Geoffry at the time of the Boston "massacre" in 1770.

The Webster home was a busy place. Each member of the family had his share of work to do. Squire Webster was a quiet but vigorous man, well known and admired throughout the neighborhood. Mrs. Webster was a happy and efficient mother.

Noah was happy at home, among his family, but he was not at all happy in school. It was not until he began to prepare for Yale College under the Reverend Nathan Perkins that he met a teacher who understood him and helped him to see the opportunities and the fascinating challenge of education.

After leaving Yale, Noah tried many things but was successful at few. His first great success was the Blue Backed Speller. But his greatest achievement was the American Dictionary of the English Language. It took Noah twenty-eight years to complete this dictionary, but it still stands today as the criterion of good usage.

Noah Webster: Boy of Words is Helen Boyd Higgins' fifth contribution to the Childhood of Famous Americans Series. It is a worthy successor to her previous books.

From the dust jacket