Mary on Horseback
by Rosemary Wells
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Description
Tells the stories of three families who were helped by the work of Mary Breckinridge, the first nurse to go into the Appalachian Mountains and give medical care to the isolated inhabitants. Includes an afterword with facts about Breckinridge and the Frontier Nursing Service she founded.Tags
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Member Reviews
This little book contains some amazing stories! Each of the three stories is quite different, but all three are vivid glimpses into the life of people in the backwoods of Kentucky. Each of the three is told from the perspective of a different person. Two of them are children of impoverished families, and the other is a nurse who came from Scotland to help the local people. I just read this book to my 6-year-old, and it made quite an impression on her. When we finished, we looked up the 1931 film, mentioned in the back of the book, about Mary Breckinridge, and watched that. It was also a powerful glimpse into history.
Mary Breckinridge, trained as a nurse during World War I, rode on horseback into the isolated mountains of Appalachia and never looked back. Instead, she spent her life fording icy streams and climbing untracked mountains to bring medical help to those in need. More nurses on horseback joined Mary . . . and the Frontier Nursing Service was born. Mary's story is amazing. And it is true.
Well written stories about a real life nurse who traveled on horseback in American Appalachia as a nurse. An excellent choice for an early reader female biography.
Three VERY short stories about Mary Breckinridge and the Frontier Nursing Service she started in 1923. What she did is amazing and wonderful, very inspiring, and a story that I was not at all familiar with. I heartily recommend it to any young readers. I am curious to read Mary Breckinridge's autobiography, Wide Neighborhoods, which had sparked Rosmary Wells to write this book.
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Author Information
264+ Works 36,049 Members
Rosemary Wells was born in New York City on January 29, 1943. She studied at the Museum School in Boston. Without her degree, she left school at the age of 19 to get married. She began her career in publishing, working as an art editor and designer first at Allyn and Bacon and later at Macmillan Publishing. She is an author and illustrator of over show more 60 books for children and young adults. Her first book was an illustrated edition of Gilbert and Sullivan's I Have a Song to Sing-O. Her other works include Martha's Birthday, The Fog Comes on Little Pig Feet, Unfortunately Harriet, Mary on Horseback, and Timothy Goes to School. She also created the characters of Max and Ruby, Noisy Nora, and Yoko, which are featured in some of her books. She has won numerous awards including a Children's Book Council Award for Noisy Nora in 1974, the Edgar Allan Poe award for two young adult books, Through the Looking Glass and When No One Was Looking, and the Boston Globe-Horn Book Award for Shy Charles. (Bowker Author Biography) show less
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Awards and Honors
Awards
Distinctions
Common Knowledge
- Canonical title
- Mary on Horseback
- Original publication date
- 1998
- People/Characters
- Mary Carson Breckinridge
- Important places
- Kentucky, USA
- Dedication
- To Mimi Donius
- First words
- In 1923, Americans drive cars, talk on the telephone, and use electric toasters.
- Last words
- (Click to show. Warning: May contain spoilers.)On May 16, 1965, Mary Breckinridge died, her dream in this world complete -- not because her work was finished, but because it would go on.
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- Members
- 1,177
- Popularity
- 21,178
- Reviews
- 4
- Rating
- (4.25)
- Languages
- English
- Media
- Paper
- ISBNs
- 12
- ASINs
- 2