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The Other Side of Courage - The Saga of Elizabeth Blackwell

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Arizona Daily Star, Sunday, December 4, 2016

'The Other Side of Courage: The Saga of Elizabeth Blackwell' By Robert Nordmeyer (CyPress Publications. $17.95 paper; Kindle edition $4.99) As a young woman Elizabeth Blackwell's gentle, caring ways were appreciated by an ailing friend who despaired of the indifferent treatment she was receiving from the exclusively male medical profession.

Blackwell's compassion, combined with her keen intellect, would make her the perfect physician her friend observed, and she owed it to the fair sex to become a doctor. It was Blackwell's sex, however, that made this aspiration a non-starter in mid-19th century America. Women had no place in surgeries and operating theaters and Blackwell's interest in medicine was considered scandalous immoral and aberrant. She was determined and fearless, though, and ultimately prevailed. In 1847 she entered the Medical College of Geneva, NY (on the current site of Hobart & William Smith Colleges). It was the only institution that would accept her. She graduated at the head of her class.

Blackwell may have scandalized her neighbors and classmates, but she is clearly much admired by author Robert Nordmeyer. He offers a well-researched, fictionalized account of America's first female doctor, beginning with the business reverses that prompted her family's move from England and following her through her ground-breaking career. His deft portrayal provides insight into the indomitable spirit of a woman who bore endless ill-treatment and ostracism and ultimately triumphed with the establishment of a clinic for poor women and children. Nordmeyer, who is retired from a career working in broadcast and for nonprofits, lives in Tucson.

- Helene Woodham

Enjoyable and Informative

By Geeky Bibliophile on November 26, 2016

Format: Kindle Edition

I received a review copy of this book courtesy of the author.

In her quest to become a doctor, Elizabeth Blackwell faced nearly-insurmountable odds. One medical school after another turned her away, outraged and scandalized that a woman would be so brazen as to attempt to become a doctor. Discouraged and disheartened, Elizabeth continued to push on. Luck was on her side when she applied to Geneva College in Geneva, New York. The Dean left the decision in the hands of the students who would have to learn and work alongside her, and (much to his surprise), they unanimously voted to allow her admission into medical school. When she graduated in 1849, Elizabeth Blackwell was entered into the annals of history as the first woman ever to earn a medical degree.

While this book focuses mainly on Elizabeth’s struggle to become a doctor, and her subsequent career, it also provides insight into her earlier years. We glimpse her life as a child living in England shortly before a tragedy forces her family to emigrate to America, and see the chain of events that led to her decision to become a doctor. Elizabeth faced many hardships in her life, but she never let anything stand in the way of her goals, nor was she afraid to take on controversial topics in order to better educate the public about health matters.

I’ve been interested in Elizabeth Blackwell since I first learned who she was, and why she was such an important historical figure. This is the first time I’ve read a book about her, however, and I learned a great deal that I didn’t know. Elizabeth Blackwell lived a fascinating life, indeed.

This book was as enjoyable as it was informative. If you like reading historical fiction novels based on real people and events, you won’t want to miss out on this one.

A Rare Historical Treat

By Don Sloan on October 17, 2015

Format: Kindle Edition

It is July, 1831, in Bristol, England. Elizabeth Blackwell is only ten years old, and a long way from her destiny. She is watching her father's sugar refinery burn to the ground, throwing the family into destitution and leading them eventually to America in search of a new hope.

This is Elizabeth's story, and every event chronicled in this excellent book, The Other Side of Courage, is a testament to her tenacity in becoming the world's first female physician.

The author, Robert Nordmeyer, painstakingly walks us through every step of Elizabeth's journey to achieve her goal of becoming the first woman doctor in a thoroughly male-dominated medical world.

Along the way, she meets many unforgettable characters, like Mary Donaldson who, though dying, nevertheless offers inspiration to Elizabeth, and a sardonic observation on her own impending death:

"The rest I am being afforded is the luxury, not the dying. Dying is the price one pays for living."

There are many such memorable passages scattered through this saga. In November, 1847, for example, at Geneva College in upstate New York, Elizabeth has just been accepted into medical school, an historic moment. Yet, she observes, there is no fanfare:

"She waited to hear the sounds of rejoicing, the shouts of liberation; the festive celebration of enlightenment. Yet there was no magic despite her powerful charge of adrenaline, no row of cannons firing a salute and tribute."

No, Elizabeth must wait many long, hard years for professional acknowledgement, enduring instead bigotry, exclusion, and a depressing seven-month "observation" stint in a state-run almshouse, where people seem to die just to escape the squalor of the place.

Finding nowhere in the United States that will take her for residency, she accepts a prolonged stay at a maternity hospital in France. While there, an unfortunate accident threatens to jeopardize all her hard work up to that point.

Nevertheless, she soldiers on, receiving an appointment to intern at the prestigious London hospital of Saint Bartholomew. There, she renews an acquaintance with a soon-to-be famous friend: Florence Nightingale.

There is much more to be seen and experienced as the reader follows Elizabeth back to the United States, where she eventually opens a clinic for the poor in Bleecker Street with her younger sister, Emily.

This book is a well-written, tediously researched account of how a destitute young Englishwoman became the role model for women practitioners of medicine everywhere. Dr. Elizabeth Blackwell opened the gates, and this superb accounting of how she did so should be required reading for every young woman today who has thoughts of going into medicine. It's inspiring, and quite a good read as well.

I give The Other Side of Courage five stars and recommend it to anyone wanting a long, satisfying glimpse into the life of a true feminine role model.

Nordmeyer Entertains As He Inspires.

By Lee M. Schnebly on October 23, 2015

Format: Kindle Edition Verified Purchase

The only other book I've read by Robert Nordmeyer is MAGNOLIAS DON'T CRTY, and i became a huge fan with that one. Though this is in a different category, a biography written as a novel, it read as interestingly as fiction. In both books Mr.. Nordmeyer gave us characters who inspire us. .Both had brave and determined folks, tenaciously seeking to embrace their challenges and win out over the negative people. Both offered scary situations which our favorite characters had to face and conquer, There was plenty of doubt whether or not they could win, and gratefully we saw them succeed. I'd never herd of Elizabeth Blackwell before, but now I hold her in my heart as a woman I want to emulate. I hope to see my goals clearly and conjure up the courage to defeat the difficulties and find success which will help other people. Nordmeyer is not just a good author. He's an inspiration.

It Was Amazing

Andretta Schellinger

Although I am sure that I have heard her name before, Elizabeth Blackwell was the unsung hero for women around the world. Not only that, but she proved without a doubt that a woman could do what a man could do in the field of medicine, even if it meant travelling over the Atlantic multiple times in her quest to become who she wanted to be.

This was not written as a biography, but it read as one, and for that I am glad. It brought in actual events, places, and people, but, added in conversations that we do not know if they occurred or not. It doesn't matter though, because for this well written story, it shines a light on someone who went above and beyond who she was to make a difference, not only in her life, but in the lives of everyone who went after her.

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