Charles W. Ferguson (1901–1987)

An Abecedarian is one who is learning or proposes to teach the ABCs. This book takes that thought and enlarges upon it giving a long and interesting word, then expounding on the etymology. The chapters are in ABC order. There are rabbit trails along the serpentine way and the author is at his best when giddily bouncing from one word to the next.

Although this book is written to inspire youngish readers with curiosity about words, it is interesting to those of us who have encountered the words for years without digging into their roots. To a scholar of Latin or Greek, it would be child's play. Only occasionally does the author become coy or cute. Written in the early 1960s, it is interesting to read as a bit of a time capsule. Man had not yet landed on the moon, and so the chapter discussing Lunarians has a bit of wonder to it still.… (meer)

The following is from the last paragraph of my book review of Methodists and the Making of America for Christian Church II class in Spring 2002:

Besides the many biographies, the book does give a well-rounded look at Methodism in America. The description of the various church organizations and how they impacted society was very informative. The description of the life of an itinerant gave depth to the man whose job it was to strengthen believers. The book changed what I thought about Methodism from being just a denomination with many governing bodies, especially in the South, to that of a united governing body from the local to nation level, just like us. Ferguson did back-up his thesis that Methodism and the United States were linked in development, but the biographies watered down his evidence.… (meer)