"Noah Webster ... was known in his day for his bold ideas and strong opinions about, well, everything."
Ages: 7 - 11
Grade Level: 2 - 5
Pages: 40
Time Period: 1700s - 1800s
Thanks to an imaginative twist by Tracy Nelson Maurer, the long-deceased Noah Webster has grabbed a quill pen to edit Noah Webster's Fighting Words. This strongly-opinionated and passionate patriot grew up in pre-Revolution America. While his fellow Americans fought with bayonets and guns, "Noah did not fire a single shot. Instead, he fought with his pen." Webster believed that America needed to completely separate from England - and that included language and spelling. So, taking these and other revolutionary ideas to the classrooms and his writing desk, this patriot set about to ultimately change the American language forever!
I enjoyed this fun book! The combination of vintage-style "cut-outs" with the bright and colorful cartoons were interesting yet cohesive. Looking for Webster's edits (the red writing) throughout the book was also very fun. I recommend reading the Timeline in the back which gives more details about Webster's life. Noah Webster's Fighting Words by Tracy Nelson Maurer is a must read for those who want to learn a little more about how the American language came to be.
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Content Warnings
Content that some individuals may find controversial or objectionable. Attention was given to include content which may offend people of a particular culture, race or religion and details which the sensitive child may find unsettling or troublesome.
"No Spoilers" offers a summary of content issues while avoiding spoilers. "With Spoilers" lists the potential content issues in detail.
No Spoilers:
Some insults and an illustration with crude humor.
With Spoilers:
Language
Mild name-calling such as incurable lunatic and blockhead.
Imagery
A political cartoon shows some inappropriate/crude humor.
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