Henry Beston was an American writer and naturalist, best known as the author of The Outermost House, written in 1925. After graduating from Harvard, Beston began teaching at the University of Lyon. Beston joined the French army in 1915 and served as an ambulance driver. Beston's first book A Volunteer Poilu describes his service in le Bois le Pretre and at the Battle of Verdun. Other books by Beston include Full Speed Ahead (1919), The Firelight Fairy Book (1919), The Starlight Wonder Book (1921), Book of Gallant Vagabonds (1925), The Sons of Kai (1926), and The Living Age (1921)