A Picture Book of Florence Nightingale

Picture Book Biography

by David A. Adler, Alexandra Wallner (Illustrator), John Wallner (Illustrator)

She revolutionized the nursing profession.

Genres: Biography, Picture Books, History, Nonfiction, Childrens, Nursing

32 pages, Library Binding

First published January 1, 1992

About the author

David Abraham Adler is an American children's author. He was born in New York City, New York in 1947. He graduated from Queens College in 1968 with a bachelor's degree in economics and education. For the next nine years, he worked as a mathematics teacher for the New York City Board of Education, while taking classes towards a master's degree in marketing, a degree he was awarded by New York University in 1971. In that same year, a question from his then-three-year-old nephew inspired Adler to write his first story, A Little at a Time, subsequently published by Random House in 1976. Adler's next project, a series of math books, drew on his experience as a math teacher. In 1977, he created his most famous character, Cam Jansen, originally featured in Cam Jansen and the Mystery of the Stolen Diamonds, which was published that year.

Adler married psychologist Renee Hamada in 1973, and their first child, Michael, was born in 1977. By that time Adler had taken a break from teaching and, while his wife continued her work, he stayed home, took care of Michael, and began a full-time writing career.

Adler's son, Michael S. Adler, is now the co-author of several books with his father, including A Picture Book of Sam Adams, A Picture Book of John Hancock, and A Picture Book of James and Dolly Madison. Another son, Edward, was the inspiration for Adler's Andy Russell series, with the events described in the series loosely based on adventures the Adler family had with Edward's enthusiasm and his pets.

As of November 2008, Adler has three sons and two grandsons. He lives in Woodmere, New York.

(source: Wikipedia)

Reviews

[Prabhat sharma · Rating 5 out of 5]

A Picture Book of Florence Nightingale (Paperback) by David A. Adler, Illustrator- Alexandra Wallner and John Wallner, Hindi language translation by Vidushak- Children’s Illustrated Colour Picture Book- This book is a part of the Picture Book Biography Series for Children. This book narrates the story of Florence Nightingale. Her parents Fanny and William Nightingale were affluent British citizens. Her elder sister Parthinope was born while they were staying in Naples, Greece so she was named as Parthenope. Florence was born on 18 May, 1820 while they were travelling in Florence, Tuscany, so she was named as Florence. In London, their winter residence was named as Embley Park, Hampshire while the summer residence was named Lee Hurst, Derbyshire. Both sisters were educated at home by teachers. From 1830 to 1839, she felt that she had received a call from God to serve humanity. In 1839, both sisters met Queen Victoria. From 1840 onwards, she helped the poor and distressed with food and clothing. In 1844 she informed her parents that she wishes to be trained as a Nurse to serve the sick in hospitals. Her parents agreed. In 1851 at the age of 31 years she was trained as a Nurse in Germany and France. She joined as Superintendent Nurse in a hospital reserved for members of Church of England. She laid emphasis on cleanliness and admitted patients from other churches also. In 1854, Crimean War started against Russia. In October 1854, British Secretary of War recruited nurses under Florence to travel to war area in Scutari, Turkey. She team worked hard and asserted to improve the cleanliness and hygienic condition of field hospital. Her team served the soldiers up to the end of the war. They returned in 1856 after the last British soldier returned to England. Queen wished to reward her but she refused because so many soldiers had died during the war. Queen Victoria appointed a Royal Commission for enquiry in which she reported on creation of Medical Nursing training in 1859. 1860, Nightingale School of Nursing was established in London. Nurses were sent to foreign nations. When they came to meet her, she presented flowers to them. Soon, Nursing schools were opened in Europe and America. In 1907, King Edward awarded her Order of Merit. She was the first woman to be awarded OBE. On 13 October 1910, she expired. Her efforts have made Nursing a respectful profession. Coloured illustrations help the reader in relating to the story. I have read the Hindi language translation of this book.

[Victoria Scott · Rating 4 out of 5]

I thought that I knew a good amount about Florence Nightingale, but boy was I wrong. I learned quite a few new things about her and I look forward to using this in my classroom.

Accelerated Reader: 4.6
Guided Reading Level: O
6 Traits: Presentation

I would use this book when talking about people who are pioneers of their craft or chosen job, then having students write an essay on a pioneer of their chosen career.

[Stacie · Rating 3 out of 5]

Nice little picture book hitting the well-worn high points in the life of Florence Nightingale. Illustrations give a nice feel for the Victorian era and the deplorable conditions of health care at this time.

[Becky B · Rating 4 out of 5]

A short, picture book biography of Florence Nightingale, a woman who defied cultural conventions to follow God's calling (a term actually used in the book) to be a nurse and helped revolutionize medical care.

This book does a satisfactory job of relating the highlights of Florence Nightingale's life and work. The illustrations are attractive enough for kids, though the specific copy I read is looking a little aged. They do manage to portray the horrors of a war zone hospital without any gruesome pictures or details inappropriate for the target age level. There's a nice timeline of Nightingale's life in the back of the book. If you're looking for a short intro to Nightingale's life and work, this is a great pick.

[Cathy · Rating 5 out of 5]

Adler, D. (1993). A picture book of Florence Nightingale. New York, NY: Scholastic, Inc.

Biography of the famous “Lady with the Lamp” touches all of the high points of her life and her nursing legacy in a lovely pastel package.

Victorian watercolor and pen illustrations capture the important moments in Nightingale’s life. Text is placed on the recto side, illustrations on the verso to aid in the transition from picture books to non-fiction, including the Important Dates at the end of this Intermediate book.

[Shareena · Rating 3 out of 5]

Includes important dates and is a great intro to autobiographies.
Activity: Students write their own autobiography

[Cheryl · Rating 3 out of 5]

A nice introduction with nicely colored illustrations. For more advanced readers.