Jacob Abbott was an American writer of children's books. He was a prolific author, writing juvenile fiction, brief histories, biographies, religious books for the general reader, and a few works in popular science.

The object of "Caleb in the Country" is to furnish useful and instructive reading to young children. The aim is not so directly to communicate knowledge, as it is to develop the moral and intellectual powers, to cultivate habits of discrimination and correct reasoning, and to establish sound principles of moral conduct.