Who is Tom Brown from The Tracker and what is their importance?

This is the author and main character of the book. He speaks in first person. He chronicles his childhood, trained by Grandfather Stalking Wolf, who is the grandfather of Brown's best friend Rick. Brown eventually grows up to be a famous tracker. This book creates a portrait that is almost unbelievable, about Brown. For one thing, it hardly seems possible that a little boy of eight, ten, and twelve could be allowed to be gone from home, unaccounted for as much as he is. Perhaps it could have happened years ago when Brown was a child, and not so much today. Brown is intensely curious about the world around him. He is naturally gifted to be a tracker.