Reef, Catherine Florence Nightingale.

Reef, Catherine   Florence Nightingale.   Houghton Mifflin/Clarion      2017  184p  $18.99      Hardback  ISBN 978-0-544-53580-0       ms/hs  Biography      E-BN      

Reef’s biography of Florence Nightingale is of the quality of a Russell Freedman nonfiction work. Her engaging prose tells the story of Nightingale’s struggle with the lack of support from her immediate family and her defiance of her expected societal role. Her determination to improve nursing and the care of patients led to the establishment of nursing schools and the beginnings of the modern profession. Her work led to a reduction in mortality rates for the British army during the Crimean War. Nightingale’s personality was complex -- she demanded total compliance from her underlings, while her compassion for the suffering soldiers drove her to improve the care they received. The book contains a number of illustrations that help bring the story to life. This book is a must-have for middle- and high-school collections.      It is highly recommended.

Summary: This biography recounts the determination of Florence Nightingale to completely restructure the field of nursing.

Nursing                                               --Stephanie Pennucci

Reef, Catherine. The Bronte Sisters.

Reef, Catherine.  The Bronte Sisters.    Houghton Mifflin/Clarion      230p $18.99 978-0-547-57966-5 2012 hs    VG -BN      Biography        

This collective biography about the Bronte family will appeal only to those students who are already obsessed with their famous novels.  Reef uses correspondence, journals, and writings of their friends and associates to describe the often dreary lives led by the three sisters and their ill-fated brother Branwell.  At times the narrative seems to drag a bit, with little glimpses into the social lives of the sisters, but that may be because Reef is careful to include every little scrap of information about their social lives in order to paint a thorough picture.

One of the major strengths of this book is its portrayal of the limited role that educated young women were able to play in the Britain of the early nineteenth century.  The only viable option open to those who were single was to serve as governesses or teachers, and these were professions that none of the Bronte sisters, Charlotte, Emily, and Ann, enjoyed at all.  The glimmer of a new feminist consciousness and the beginnings of the progressive movement are also discussed at various points in the book.  Thus the lives and works of the three sisters are placed in the context of the social movements and intellectual concerns of the day.

Bronte sisters-Biography                                    --Carol Kennedy

Reef. Jane Austen: A Life Revealed

Reef, Catherine   Jane Austen: A Life Revealed   

Clarion see Houghton Mifflin  2011  192p  18.99 978-0-547-37021-7 

 hs/adult      VG-BN       

 A well-research biography of the popular 19th century author, Jane Austen.  Created for students wanting to know more about the enigmatic author who left little behind but her novels of romance and social controversy.  Set within the context of 19th century English society in which Austen lived, this exhaustively-researched biography sheds light on an author about who relatively little is known.  She did not marry, nor keep a diary, and most of her letters were destroyed.  Yet, Reef has managed to create a definitive, readable and well-researched biography.  She really does bring Jane Austen, as well as her family and times, to life. 

Black and white period drawings, as well as photos from film adaptations of her novels supplement the text.  Twenty-four pages of bibliographical references are appended at the end of the biography, as well as an exhaustive index and list of credits. 

Although the publisher has indicated that this biography is aimed at students and young adult readers, adults will also enjoy this readable, interesting and well-researched volume.                   Naismith(3), Pat

 

Reef, Catherine. Ernest Hemingway.

Reef, Catherine. Ernest Hemingway.
Houghton Mifflin/Clarion/Graphia/Kingfisher 2009 181p 20.00
978-0-618-98705-4 ms/hs
Hemingway’s life, lifestyle, and connections to his writing will intrigue students. A very readable text coupled with numerous photographs make this book a visual treat. Extensive chapter notes, bibliography, picture credits and index. Grades 7-12. Reef researched Hemingway’s life and pulled together numerous photographs to illustrate the events and people in Ernest Hemingway’s life. A very readable text shows Hemingway to be a man attracted to violence from an early age. As he grew to manhood, he showed a risk taking attitude that led him into combat situations even when he did not need to be close. His competitiveness led to failed relationships with other men and his love interests changed with the wind. Reef shows him to be self-centered yet brilliant in his writing style. Extensive chapter notes, bibliography and picture credits will lead students to other resources. An exhaustive index will help the student researching particular writings of Hemingway. Students will feel they really understand the man and what drove him to write about the topics he did. His interest in bull fighting and his love of adventure come through in his novels and short stories. He seemed more at home in foreign countries than in the Untied States. His mental health issues are revealed from an early time when he shot animals and thought about shooting his father. His father’s suicide foreshadowed Ernest Hemingway’s own. Family dynamics show that Ernest was not an easy person to be around, although a few of his sisters formed a close bond with him. Recommended for grades 7-12. McNicol,Lois