A biography of the life of Henry Watson Fowler (1858-1933). It tells the story of his work on "The King's English", "Modern English Usage", the "Concise" and "Pocket Oxford" dictionaries, and his collaboration on some of these projects with his brother, Frank. The development of the Fowlers' books is described, from the struggles to achieve an acceptable style for the "Concise" and "Pocket Oxford" dictionaries, to the planning and preparation of "Modern English Usage". Against the descriptions of Fowler's work is set the story of a man whose career began as a schoolmaster, but who changed career to risk all by moving to London to begin a new life as a writer. Henry then moved to Guernsey, where all his books were written, and at the age of 50 married a nursing-home matron, Jessie Wills. The later chapters chronicle the elderly Henry's struggles with the authorities to be able to enlist during World War I and his adventures as a soldier in France.