This nonfiction book is about a visionary educator who grew up in a small Midwestern town. Her intensely personal story as a student and then teacher in one-room country schools took place during the struggle over public education in mid-twentieth century America.She put herself through college during the Great Depression, became a trailblazer in teacher preparation, advocated for minority education well before the passage of civil rights legislation, and created innovative new ways to teach reading to first graders. She directed rebuilding of the elementary education system of Japan for the Allied Occupation following World War ll.A soft-spoken individual who championed women's rights, she approached life with a disarming sense of humor.