One of these men was John Holt, a Massachusetts fifth grade teacher, who in 1964 wrote a book which became a national best seller, How Children Fail, described as “the original best seller about how even the ‘brightest’ kids in the “best” schools are made stupid by their fear of humiliation, by school’s separation from life, and by the assumption kids will only learn what they are taught.” (GWS Catalog) Three years later, Holt wrote How Children Learn, followed by many other books, to include Escape from Childhood, Freedom and Beyond, and Teach Your Own. Holt was an unpretentious and humble man, a keen observer of children, and a great writer, and he made many appearances on national television. He traversed the country speaking and wrote articles for national magazines and newspapers on the subject of school reform, the education of children, and homeschooling. On occasion he was called upon to testify on behalf of a homeschooling family facing trouble with local authorities or before state legislative bodies.