To the front!: Clara Barton braves the Battle of Antietam

ldquo;'What are these cornhusks?' / They are bandages. / 'Where are your assistants?' / They've all gone. / 'How about this man?' / There's a chance. / 'Can I assist you?' / Can you stand it? / 'Oh yes!' Clara says." In this riveting tribute to the "Angel of the Battle-field," Friddell mixes incantatory lyrics with matter-of-fact quotes from Barton, which are printed in a different color and font to capture a powerful sense of the battle's fearful carnage and the courage required to plunge into it, even as a noncombatant. Toning down the gore only a little in his realistically modeled scenes, Cyr depicts Barton with a smudged face and bloodstained apron--not just directing her crew of helpers to set up beds and deliver meals to the wounded but cradling a soldier who is shot just as she is giving him a drink, holding an unconscious patient on a table rocked by exploding shells, and bucking up a surgeon who has succumbed to exhaustion and despair. An extended afterword that includes photos and further quotations adds biographical details and highlights Barton's long friendship with Frederick Douglass and her fervent support for both women's suffrage and equal pay. Readers moved to learn more about this admirable figure will be well served by the closing list of resources (though the bibliography is largely made up of older and archival works).

Gr 1--4--Nurse Clara Barton traveled in a wagon to the Civil War battleground in Antietam, where she tended to wounded soldiers and assisted surgeons during and after the fighting. The story is told largely in Clara's own clear and compelling words, augmented with concise and poetic third-person text. Soft-edge, digitally painted illustrations make great use of light, shadow, and perspective; they represent the story faithfully, including the surgeon's ominous tools. As the subtitle indicates, this book shows only a few days of Clara Barton's life and work, but has rich resources in an afterword, photographs, quotations, an extensive bibliography, and places to visit, illuminating Barton's lifelong work as an educator, humanitarian, suffragette, civil rights campaigner, and founder of the American Red Cross. VERDICT A vivid window into a few bloody and exhausting days shows Barton's unflinching bravery and inexhaustible dedication to helping those around her. Recommended.--Jenny Arch

*Starred Review* "‘What are these cornhusks?' / They are bandages. / ‘Where are your assistants?' / They've all gone. / ‘How about this man?' / There's a chance. / ‘Can I assist you?' / Can you stand it? / ‘Oh yes!' Clara says." In this riveting tribute to the "Angel of the Battle-field," Friddell mixes incantatory lyrics with matter-of-fact quotes from Barton, which are printed in a different color and font to capture a powerful sense of the battle's fearful carnage and the courage required to plunge into it, even as a noncombatant. Toning down the gore only a little in his realistically modeled scenes, Cyr depicts Barton with a smudged face and bloodstained apron—not just directing her crew of helpers to set up beds and deliver meals to the wounded but cradling a soldier who is shot just as she is giving him a drink, holding an unconscious patient on a table rocked by exploding shells, and bucking up a surgeon who has succumbed to exhaustion and despair. An extended afterword that includes photos and further quotations adds biographical details and highlights Barton's long friendship with Frederick Douglass and her fervent support for both women's suffrage and equal pay. Readers moved to learn more about this admirable figure will be well served by the closing list of resources (though the bibliography is largely made up of older and archival works). Grades 2-4. Copyright 2022 Booklist Reviews.

Gr 1–4—Nurse Clara Barton traveled in a wagon to the Civil War battleground in Antietam, where she tended to wounded soldiers and assisted surgeons during and after the fighting. The story is told largely in Clara's own clear and compelling words, augmented with concise and poetic third-person text. Soft-edge, digitally painted illustrations make great use of light, shadow, and perspective; they represent the story faithfully, including the surgeon's ominous tools. As the subtitle indicates, this book shows only a few days of Clara Barton's life and work, but has rich resources in an afterword, photographs, quotations, an extensive bibliography, and places to visit, illuminating Barton's lifelong work as an educator, humanitarian, suffragette, civil rights campaigner, and founder of the American Red Cross. VERDICT A vivid window into a few bloody and exhausting days shows Barton's unflinching bravery and inexhaustible dedication to helping those around her. Recommended.—Jenny Arch