| “This
dreadful civil war has as a huge beast consumed my whole of
life.”
–
Dorothea Dix
If you
follow PBS Mercy Street you might be interested in the Foreword
where Executive Producer, Ridley Scott, reveals which historical
individuals the Mercy Street characters portray.
Heroines
of Mercy Street is a historical account about nursing
and the women who sacrificed so much to help others. Discovering
what formed these women before and during the war and what
happens to them afterwards is fascinating. Dorothea Dix’s
biography is amazing. She was the granddaughter of a Boston
Doctor. Dix was independent, intelligent and inventive. At
fifty-nine years old, she volunteered to create an army corps
of female nurses to care for wounded soldiers during the Civil
War. “The nurses modeled on the group of nurses who
followed Florence Nightgale to the Crimean War.” Anne
Reading, an English nurse trained by Florence Nightingale
comes to America, and is covered in the book, as well. The
author covers the lives of others such as Mary Phinney who
suffered the dislike of Dr. Summers who did not like Nurses.
Dix was responsible for placing Nurses in the Mansion and
told Mary she must stay. The negative history of doctors and
surgeons towards nurses during the civil war is relayed throughout.
Elizabeth Blackwell was the first licensed female doctor;
she experienced prejudice and roadblocks in schooling as well
as practicing. We also learn about Clara Barton who traveled
the battlefields as an independent nurse. We learn more about
the development of the Red Cross, The United the States Sanitary
Commissions, and other changes to monitor health care and
protect patients. The author goes over Medical history in
German and France through popular nurses, too.
Toler
covers the Mansion House of Alexandria, Virginia, a mansion
turned hospital during the Civil War but she also covers Hospital
Transport Ships, battlefields and after war time changes.
If Toler’s historical accounts leave you wanting more,
there is list of "reading suggestions"
at the back of the book.
Narrator
Suzanne Toren brings the history of these brave women
to life. Her strong, well-spoken tone matches the Civil War
nurses perfectly. Toren was awarded 2009 Best Voice in NONFICTION
& CULTURE forDewey
. She has narrated other popular books such as
Room by Emma Donoghue and Mythology
by Edith Hamilton.
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