What a perfectly splendid biography of a brave and wonderful woman! Written in that relentlessly positive tone I so well remember from all the Junior Literary Guild biographies I read as a kid, this can't be called great prose. The subject transcends the Pollyannaish tone, and Emily Dunning Barringer is a woman to make one's heart soar. Can't recommend this one highly enough, and I'm in Wendy's debt for the recommendation. I'm just as glad I missed this as a kid because it probably would have sent me to medical school. Five stars for the story, three for the writing. ( )