The Horn Book Guide

BIOGRAPHIES

Fern, Tracey

W Is for Webster: Noah Webster and His American Dictionary

32 pp. | Farrar/Ferguson | November, 2015 | Trade ISBN 978-0-374-38240-7 $17.99

(2) K-3 Illustrated by Boris Kulikov. This breezy picture-book biography introduces readers to Webster. A smart and serious student, he could also be a bit highfalutin ("Noah called goofing around 'playing roguish tricks.' This is an example of Noah talking big"), which Fern emphasizes using a lighthearted repeated rhetorical pattern. Kulikov's energetic illustrations put Webster at the center of every spread by making him larger or brighter than his surroundings. Bib.

Reviewer: Betty Carter | Horn Book Magazine Issue: November, 2015