Alexander Sutherland Neill (17 October 1883 – 23 September 1973) was a Scottish educator and author known for his school, Summerhill, and its philosophy of freedom from adult coercion and its community selfgovernance. Neill wrote 20 books. His top seller was the 1960 Summerhill, read widely in the free school movement in the 1960s onwards. Neill’s principal book about his educational methods, Summerhill: A Radical Approach to Child Rearing (1960), stimulated debates about alternatives to conventional schooling. The book was more influential in the United States, West Germany, and Japan than in Great Britain. His other books include The Problem Child (1926), The Problem Parent (1932), The Problem Family (1949), The Free Child (1953), and an autobiography, Neill! Neill! Orange Peel! (1972). Neill was awarded three honorary degrees: a master's and two honorary doctorates. One doctorate was from the Newcastle University in 1966. He was reportedly very proud of the awards.