'''Noel Perrin''' (September_18, 1927 – November_21, 2004) was an American Essayist and a Professor at Dartmouth_College. Perrin was born on September_18, 1927 in New_York_City and grew up in Pelham Manor, N.Y. His parents both worked as advertising copywriters at the J. Walter Thompson Agency. His mother, Blanche Chenery Perrin, was also the author of several novels. He was educated at the Woodberry_Forest_School in Woodberry Forest, Va., and Williams_College, where he majored in English literature, graduating in 1949. He received a master's degree from Duke_University in 1950, then served in the United_States_Army. During the Korean_War he served as a forward observer in a Field_artillery unit and was awarded the Bronze Star. During the 1950s, Perrin taught English literature at the Woman's_College_of_the_University_of_North_Carolina (1956–1959). He also studied at Cambridge_University, where he received an M.Litt. degree in 1958. Perrin joined the Dartmouth faculty in 1959 as an instructor in English, reaching the rank of full professor in 1970. He specialized in teaching modern poetry, particularly that of Robert_Frost. He was a Fulbright professor at Warsaw_University in Poland in 1970, and was twice a Guggenheim_Fellow. He joined Dartmouth's Environmental_Studies Program in 1984 as an Adjunct Professor, teaching courses on a range of subjects. He wrote essays for many publications and was a regular contributor to the ''Washington_Post'' for more than 20 years, covering a wide variety of subjects. His ''Post'' essays later were published as ''A Reader's Delight'' (1988), one of his 12 books. Mr. Perrin's later ''Post'' columns about forgotten works of children's literature were collected in the book ''A Child's Delight'' (1997). His second book, ''Dr. Bowdler's Legacy: A History of Expurgated Books in England and America'' (1969), was nominated for the National_Book_Award. His sixth book was ''Giving up the Gun: Japan's Reversion to the Sword, 1543–1879''. In 1963 Perrin bought a farm in Thetford_Center,_Vermont, which served him as home and grist for six books, including ''First Person Rural: Essays of a Sometime Farmer'' (1978). "He reveled in the rural life," said writer Reeve_Lindbergh, whose sister Anne Spencer Lindbergh was Perrin's third wife. "He was a fresh and unexpected, ethical, humane and charming voice for northern New England." Perrin's interest in environmental matters, including Alternate_energy_sources, led him to purchase an Electric_car in 1990. He recounted his adventures driving his converted Ford_Escort from the builder in California home to Vermont in ''Solo: Life with an Electric Car'' (1992). One advantage of the car proved to be a rare reserved parking spot on campus—with its own electrical outlet. Perrin later put a Solar_panel array on his barn roof. Perrin once wrote to a friend: "I currently spend half my time teaching at Dartmouth, half farming and half writing. That this adds up to three halves I am all too aware." Perrin, who suffered from Shy-Drager_syndrome, died at his farmhouse on November_21, 2004. == Books == # ''A Passport Secretly Green'' (1961) # ''Dr._Bowdler's_Legacy: A History of Expurgated Books in England and America'' (1969) # ''Vermont in All Weathers'' (1971) # ''The Amateur Sugar Maker'' (1972) # ''First_Person_Rural: Essays of a Sometime Farmer'' (1978) # ''Giving_up_the_Gun: Japan's Reversion to the Sword, 1543–1879'' (1979) # ''Second Person Rural: More Essays of a Sometime Farmer'' (1980) # ''Third Person Rural: Further Essays of a Sometime Farmer'' (1983) # ''A Reader's Delight'' (1988) # ''Last Person Rural'' (1991) # ''Solo:_Life_with_an_Electric_Car'' (1992) # ''A Child's Delight'' (1997) == External links == *Dartmouth College obituary *''Washington Post'' obituary Perrin, Noel Perrin, Noel Perrin, Noel Perrin, Noel