The Forgotten Founding Father: Noah Webster's Obsession and the Creation of an American Culture

by Joshua Kendall

Overview

Noah Webster's name is now synonymous with the dictionary he created, but his story is not nearly so ubiquitous. Now acclaimed author of The Man Who Made Lists, Joshua Kendall sheds new light on Webster's life, and his far-reaching influence in establishing the American nation.

Webster hobnobbed with various Founding Fathers and was a young confidant of George Washington and Ben Franklin. He started New York's first daily newspaper, predating Alexander Hamilton's New York Post. His "blue-backed speller" for schoolchildren sold millions of copies and influenced early copyright law. But perhaps most important, Webster was an ardent supporter of a unified, definitively American culture, distinct from the British, at a time when the United States of America were anything but unified-and his dictionary of American English is a testament to that.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9780425245453
Publisher:	Penguin Publishing Group
Publication date:	03/06/2012
Pages:	416
Product dimensions:	5.40(w) x 8.20(h) x 1.00(d)
Age Range:	18 Years

About the Author

Joshua Kendall is a language enthusiast and an award-winning freelance journalist whose work has appeared in such publications as The Boston Globe, The Wall Street Journal, and Psychology Today. He lives in Boston.

Editorial Reviews

…Joshua Kendall gives us a lively and insightful biography, the best picture we have of Webster's complex character.
—The New York Times

Jesse Sheidlower

Once you get past the author's debatable point that Noah Webster should be considered among the Founding Fathers, Joshua Kendall offers a solid portrait of this complex man. Webster, best known for his Dictionary of the American Language, was far more than that. He was a significant force in the creation of a true American culture. Arthur Morey offers a solid reading, at times making up for somewhat dry material. His voice is pleasant and easy to listen to, keeping the listener engaged. He changes his tone to suit the material, giving it the sense of a well-delivered history lecture. Any weakness is in the material, not the delivery. R.C.G. © AudioFile 2011, Portland, Maine

JULY 2011 - AudioFile

Once you get past the author's debatable point that Noah Webster should be considered among the Founding Fathers, Joshua Kendall offers a solid portrait of this complex man. Webster, best known for his Dictionary of the American Language, was far more than that. He was a significant force in the creation of a true American culture. Arthur Morey offers a solid reading, at times making up for somewhat dry material. His voice is pleasant and easy to listen to, keeping the listener engaged. He changes his tone to suit the material, giving it the sense of a well-delivered history lecture. Any weakness is in the material, not the delivery. R.C.G. © AudioFile 2011, Portland, Maine

JULY 2011 - AudioFile