Noah Webster

November 1, 2009
Gr 3-6-Although best known for his dictionaries, Webster, a contemporary and friend of Benjamin Franklin, George Washington, and other "founding fathers," made many contributions to the United States as a new nation. He advocated standardization of spellings and pronunciations of words, differentiating between American and British English. He was an early proponent of public education. He was instrumental in getting the first U.S. copyright laws approved. Unfortunately, while his many accomplishments are certainly worthy of study and attention, none of them are of particular interest to children. The thoughtful, quotation-heavy, and lengthy text is appropriately aimed at older readers, and the attractive oil paintings, realistic, dark-toned tableaux, accurately reflect the period. However, their formal composition may appeal more to an adult audience. Instead of tightly focused pictures that draw a child's eye to important details, these images are often panoramic views. The art is beautiful, but better suited to museum viewing than a picture-book biography. Webster is a fascinating topic, but this book does not succeed in bringing him to life for young readers."Lucinda Snyder Whitehurst, St. Christopher's School, Richmond, VA"

Copyright 2009 School Library Journal, LLC Used with permission.

November 15, 2009
Grades 4-7 This highly illustrated, large-format book presents the life of Noah Webster (17581843) from his early years, when he neglected work on the family farm in favor of reading, to his later accomplishments, including an Americanized spelling book. Though his influence on political thought and education was notable in his day, he is best remembered for his dictionary of the American language. Sheas succinct text, longer than that of a picture book and with a reading level suitable for junior-high students, offers a well-organized and clearly written account of Websters life, studded with memorable facts and supported by informative sidebars. Rich in color and detail, the oil paintings represent the period well. Though a couple of scenes show a little awkwardness in the relation of one figure to another, the portrayal of individual people and their surroundings is often very fine. Back matter includes an afterword, a chronology, and lists of primary and secondary sources.(Reprinted with permission of Booklist, copyright 2009, American Library Association.)