Poet Walt Whitman tends to wounded soldiers during the U.S. Civil War.Golio opens his account of a sometimes-overlooked chapter in Whitman's life with a grand statement: "America-it was everything he believed in. Friendship, equality, and freedom." Whitman, distraught over the Civil War and a stalwart believer in the Union's effort to end slavery, comforted wounded soldiers, regardless of which side they fought for. "The truth of war was not flags flying, but young men dying." At first he did so in Brooklyn, where he lived, but when he learned that his brother had been injured, he traveled to Virginia to care for him. He relocated to Washington, D.C., to care for other hospitalized soldiers; he helped them write letters, brought them treats, and provided good conversation. Excerpts from Whitman's Leaves of Grass punctuate the text: "And my heart, O my soldiers, my veterans, / My heart gives you love." In Golio's thoughtful and tender presentation, Whitman is the consummate friend: "He met their eyes with his, touched or held their hands, and read to them even if they seemed not to hear." Lewis' richly textured watercolor paintings of soldiers lying wounded on the battlefield and in the hospital, of city scenes and moonlit nights, together with images of the gray-bearded Whitman both in action and in contemplation, convey the heart of this beautiful story.In a time of strife in contemporary America, this emotive story centers empathy and kindness. (further information about Whitman, archival photographs, sources and resources, picture credits) (Informational picture book. 7-10)

Poet Walt Whitman tends to wounded soldiers during the U.S. Civil War.Golio opens his account of a sometimes-overlooked chapter in Whitman's life with a grand statement: "America-it was everything he believed in. Friendship, equality, and freedom." Whitman, distraught over the Civil War and a stalwart believer in the Union's effort to end slavery, comforted wounded soldiers, regardless of which side they fought for. "The truth of war was not flags flying, but young men dying." At first he did so in Brooklyn, where he lived, but when he learned that his brother had been injured, he traveled to Virginia to care for him. He relocated to Washington, D.C., to care for other hospitalized soldiers; he helped them write letters, brought them treats, and provided good conversation. Excerpts from Whitman's Leaves of Grass punctuate the text: "And my heart, O my soldiers, my veterans, / My heart gives you love." In Golio's thoughtful and tender presentation, Whitman is the consummate friend: "He met their eyes with his, touched or held their hands, and read to them even if they seemed not to hear." Lewis' richly textured watercolor paintings of soldiers lying wounded on the battlefield and in the hospital, of city scenes and moonlit nights, together with images of the gray-bearded Whitman both in action and in contemplation, convey the heart of this beautiful story.In a time of strife in contemporary America, this emotive story centers empathy and kindness. (further information about Whitman, archival photographs, sources and resources, picture credits) (Informational picture book. 7-10)