Edith Cavell (Profiles Series)

These balanced British biographies are unadorned portraits, lightened by interesting details and moments of humor. Authors and illustrators have kept to standard sources to provide readings that are both accurate and absorbing. For instance, the price to be paid by the lonely crusader is made clear as Florence Nightingale first struggles with her family to be allowed to train as a nurse and the ensuing struggle with medical authorities to be allowed to practice. Emmeline Pankhurst is another figure whose contributions are well worth discovering. Especially absorbing are the descriptions of Pankhurst's autocratic temperament and the force feeding of the imprisoned suffragists. Edith Cavell's story begins with a moving description of the return of her remains to England in 1919, a device both brave, in that it reveals the end of the story first, and sensible, since many a modern reader will need an introduction to her. Black & white illustrations are occasionally unclear but, in general, the book is sufficient for social studies and general interest reading. Intended for grades 4-6.