reviewed

I thought this book was a great starter biography for young students. The writing is clear and concise and easily describes Clara Barton’s life from start to finish. The vocabulary used is basic and if there are words that are more tier two or three, they are defined. For example, because Clara was a painfully shy girl, her mother confronted a phrenologist. This is a tier three word and is clearly defined in the book for younger readers. As a non-fiction biography, this text is organized chronologically and a timeline is provided in the back for reference. There are little breaks in the books that touch on important events in history that happen parallel to Clara Barton’s life. If there was anything I thought the book could do better, it would be the illustrations. Even though they are reflective of what is being discussed in the book, it would have been more interesting to have actual photographs, such as pictures of the red cross bricks placed in Clara’s honor. It was an interesting read for a person not incredibly well known in history, especially to younger people. I did enjoy the fact that the author made an emphasis on how much Clara accomplished in her time for a woman. This could be inspiring to young girls who may need someone to look up to. The message of this book was to tell of how Clara Barton overcame her circumstances as a woman to move the United States forward in education and the Red Cross. ( )

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