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Clara And Davie (2014)

by Patricia Polacco(Favorite Author)

3.99 of 5 Votes: 1

ISBN

0545354773 (ISBN13: 9780545354776)

languge

English

genre

History & Biography

publisher

Scholastic Press

review 1: Another winner from a prolific and talented author/illustrator, Clara and Davie introduces the reader to Clara Barton as a young girl. I especially enjoyed reading about her relationship with her brother, Davie. Not many brothers ten years older would take the time to help and befriend his younger sister the way Davie does. It's clear that Clara had a gift for healing from the time she was very young. But like everyone else she faced her own challenges including a prominent lisp. This lisp led many of those around her to make fun of her causing her to withdraw, but thanks to the efforts of her brother and other family members she was educated at home. When Davie suffers a devastating injury, Clara is just the one to help him face his own heart-wrenching challenges. ... moreLike all her other family stories, Polacco shares the experiences that helped people grow and become the people they were. Keep in mind that biographical picture books like this one often have made up dialogue in them, after all nobody was around to record everything that someone may have said at some point in his/her life.
review 2: Patricia Polacco is one of our great contemporary picture book authors, and specializes in picture books with serious content such as racism, disabilities, and even cancer, making them appropriate for older elementary school readers. In her newest book, which fits in perfectly for Women's History Month, she explores the girlhood of one of the most famous female figures of the 19th century, Clara Barton.Clara was the fifth child to be born into the Barton family in Massachusetts, and with her mother in ill health, she was virtually raised by her siblings, particularly her older brother Davie, whom she adored. Joyous illustrations in Polacco's signature style show Davie showing Clara how to ride on a horse while she flings her arms in the air in delight. She helped Davie with his chores on the farm, and had an immediate affinity for nature and particularly with animals. But she had a speech impediment that made her shy and afraid of people; because no one understood this sort of problem in that day, her older sister punished her for not speaking correctly. School was a nightmare for her, and finally her parents agreed she could be taught at home. Even as a young girl, Clara had healing hands and neighbors let her treat their farm animals. When Clara's beloved brother Davie breaks both legs in an accident, she becomes his nurse and with her coaxing, urges him back to health, giving him the courage to try to walk again. This is a touching introduction to a famous woman from history from a unique perspective--her love for her brother. Children will be able to easily identify with Clara's inhibitions, her love for nature, and animals, and her desire to help her brother heal. An author's note tells more about Barton's career as a teacher, nurse, and founder of the American Red Cross. In an intriguing author's note, we learn that Patricia Polacco herself is distantly related to Clara Barton, on her mother's side of the family, and they own a vase which is reputed to once have belonged to Clara Barton herself. less

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