The Poppy Lady: Moina Belle Michael and Her Tribute to Veterans by Barbara Elizabeth Walsh

The Poppy Lady: Moina Belle Michael and Her Tribute to Veterans Reviews

• 
  June Jacobs

  With the centennial of the World War I armistice approaching on November 11th, 2018, I decided I wanted to feature books about 'The Great War' or World War II each Monday of this month for my Marvelous Middle-Grade Monday posts.
  
  A couple of months ago I began searching the local library's online catalog for appropriate titles, and I was thrilled to find this gem in the collection!
  
  Moina Belle Michael was raised in the small community of Good Hope, Georgia, after the Civil War. Families had lost everything in 'The Surrender' and could not afford to hire a teacher for the local children. Moina's mother was determined to help her daughter become educated so Moina could teach her younger siblings and the neighbor's children.
  
  After three years of boarding school fifteen-year old Moina cleaned out an abandoned slaves' cabin on the plantation and opened a school for her siblings and a few local children.
  
  In the summer of 1914, Miss Michael had been traveling in Europe when World War I broke out. When the Germans sank an American ship in March, 1917, she prayed the United States would not enter the war.
  
  At this time, she was a teacher and dorm mother at the University of Georgia's Normal School. She dreaded the U.S. Congress's vote on whether the nation would enter the war. When it was announced that the United States was joining in the war in Europe, Moina vowed to do whatever she could to help the soldiers. She wanted them to be remembered for their service and sacrifice.
  
  She knitted sock and rolled bandages with other local women. She delivered treats to the nearby military camp and invited soldiers to share a meal at her home.
  
  In the autumn of 1918, she completed the training presented by the YMCA and held at Columbia University in New York City so she could become a canteen worker. She applied to go overseas but was denied due to the fact that she was too old. {She was forty-nine years old at the time.}
  
  She wanted to help out somehow. She reflected upon what she could do to help the war effort. She decided it would be worthwhile to help the soldiers before they left for their assignments overseas, so she opened a reading/meeting room in the basement of a hall on Columbia's campus.
  
  Men and women in the military along with university secretaries visited the room each day to read, sing, and visit with others. Miss Michael used her own meager salary to buy flowers to brighten up the dreary basement. She felt called to do more to ease the stress of these soldiers who were serving or had served their country in war.
  
  By chance, Moina read a poem in a magazine written by Lieutenant Colonel John McCrae who was a Canadian physician. The poem, 'In Flanders Fields', was a tribute to the soldiers who perished on the battlefields of Flanders. In the poem, the battlefield was covered with white crosses and bright red poppies.
  
  Then and there Moina Belle Michael vowed to buy red poppies to give out to others and to always wear a red poppy herself in honor of the poppies of Flanders Fields.
  
  She went out shopping in New York City to purchase red poppies. She found one large and twenty-four small silk poppies in a single department store. She pinned one poppy to her collar and hurried back to the basement room. She placed the large poppy in a vase and handed out the twenty-three smaller ones to the men and women leaving for France.
  
  It is striking that two days after she purchased the twenty-five poppies, World War I ended. She was not ready to rest. She saw how difficult it was for the returning troops to find jobs and get the medical care they needed.
  
  She decided to help out by trying to get various organizations to honor and support the veterans by adopting the Flanders Fields Memorial Poppy. People around the world began to donate money to the funds to help veterans, war widows, and orphans.
  
  Many unemployed and disabled veterans made and distributed poppies. Moina was named the 'Poppy Lady'.
  
  Moina Belle Michael died at the age of seventy-four and was honored with a military funeral in her honor in Athens, Georgia.
  
  The 'Author's Note' tells the touching story of how her own father had met Miss Michael when he was a soldier in World War II. The soldier, Pat, told his author daughter about how nice Miss Michael was. This prompted Barbara Elizabeth Walsh to research and write this compelling biography.
  
  The 'Legacy' section tells how the Flanders Poppy is still recognized as a symbol of remembrance. These poppies are still distributed by several veterans groups in America.
  
  A 'Selected Biography' is included.
  
  The original paintings by artist Layne Johnson are beautiful and contribute greatly to this amazing woman's biography.
  
  If you would like to read the touching poem which began this red poppy tradition, you will find the text of 'In Flanders Fields' and a brief biography of the poet who wrote it at the following link:
  'In Flanders Fields' Poem
  
  This biography is highly recommended to parents/grandparents, librarians, teachers, and fans of American history/World War I history/military history/twentieth century history. It is inspiring and engaging and will show a true-life example of a woman who dedicated her life to serving others.
  
  I borrowed this book from the local public library.
  
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• 
  Dana

  Loved learning about one person’s plan to brighten a soldier’s day became a national symbol.
• 
  Alex Baugh

  Once again, it will soon be Veteran's Day in the US and Remembrance Day in many other countries around the world. This is a day we set aside to honor, remember, and reflect on those persons who are serving and have served their country during armed conflicts and is often referred to as Poppy Day, thanks to the efforts of Moina Belle Michael A/K/A The Poppy Lady.
  
  Now Barbara Elizabeth Walsh has written a book detailing how Moina earned her nickname. Walsh begins with a brief introductory prologue describing Moina's life up to World War I. Moina was a well-educated girl from Good Hope, Georgia who began teaching the children of neighbors in 1885 in an old slave cabin at the age of 15. By the time World War I broke out, she was a university professor at the University of Georgia.
  
  The rest of The Poppy Lady is a narrowly focused narrative about Moina's attempt to do something meaningful for the soldiers who fought in the Great War. It begins Moina's story with the start of the war, while she was traveling through Europe. Still disturbed by what she had seen of the fighting after she returned home, Moina was determined to do something for the soldiers after the US entered the war in 1917. Like many women on the home front, Moina knitted warm items, rolling bandages, collected books and magazines and even invited soldiers home for a meal, but she continued to feel she could do more.
  
  So off she went to New York and set up a welcoming place in Hamilton Hall, Columbia University, where soldiers could come and relax, talk and get information. But even though it was a hugh success, but Moina wanted to do still more.
  
  One day she read the poem "We Shall Not Sleep" by Lieutenant Colonel John McCrae, a Canadian doctor, which honors the soldiers fallen on the battlefields of Flanders, Belgium. Moved and inspired, Moina began wearing and giving out poppies as a tribute to those soldiers. Other began to follow her example and eventually the poppy was adopted around the world as a symbol of honor and remembrance for the fallen members of the armed services.
  
  What a wonderful introductory biographical account of Moina Belle Michael's work during and after World War I Barbara Elizabeth Walsh has written about this not well known lady who did so much. And Layne Johnson's lavishly detailed oil on canvas painting do so much to capture Moina's spirit.
  A picture books illustrations do so much in furthering the telling of a story and that is certainly true here. Together with Walsh easily accessible text, Moina's determination simply shines through, making The Poppy Lady a truly inspirational book for young readers that shows how one person can make a big difference.
  
  This book is recommended for readers age 7-10.
  This book was sent by the publisher.
• 
  John Parker

  Walsh, Barbara E, and Layne Johnson. The Poppy Lady: Moina Belle Michael and Her Tribute to Veterans. Honesdale, Pennsylvania: Calkins Creek, 2012. Print.
  
  The story of Moina Belle Michael is unfamiliar to many that have grown up in the past twenty or thirty years. To older Americans, her name may have slipped, but the memory of veterans with poppies is as familiar as an often-recited poem about Flanders Fields. For me, those memories date back to my neighbor, Mr. Yeager and his ever-present cigar. He was a veteran of WWI and I remember seeing him outside Kresge’s Dime Store giving away poppies and encouraging everyone to remember the veterans. He was my poppy guy. Today, my father is in a veteran’s home, but is not engaged in making poppies, he writes feature stories for their in-house newsletter.
  
  For those with no background knowledge, The Poppy Lady provides a perfect opportunity to gain both perspective and appreciation. The story crafted by Walsh is filled with inspiration to future generations with her oft cited “But she wanted to do more.” The oils by Layne Johnson provide a powerful backdrop for war and its aftermath. Together, the words and pictures tell of a time, place, and way of life that are all to unfamiliar to Americans, even when war is ongoing. The story provides opportunity to reflect: upon one’s past, future, and all the space in between where we too can do more.
  
  Schools and public libraries will want to add The Poppy Lady to their collections. It is more than a child’s picture book with a civics lesson. Perhaps an ideal way to do more is to make a gift of this book to a veteran’s organization or home. Creative classroom teachers will see plenty of opportunities to continue the traditions and spread the word of The Poppy Lady.
  
• 
  Steven Brown

  Thanks to the wonders of photography and early film we can fall into the trap of thinking of the First World War period as almost a fictonal creation of sepia prints and jerky movements. This book uses simple, direct narrative and rich illustration to restore some of the terror and humanity of the people who went through this difficult time nearly a century ago. The writing skillfully selects episodes to keep the story spare and clean, while the illustrations are historically accurate, rich with color, and filled with human emotion that matches the text. An excellent lesson in the use of rich and saturated blues.
  
  The combination of text and drawing brings the era to life.
  
  Perhaps it would have been more historically appropriate to bring this book out in 2017, but I'm glad they aren't waiting. A treat for the young reader interested in history.
  
  Do children still read "In Flanders Fields?" It ends, of course, with a call to continue fighting, but before that time a deeper impression is made of the waste of human potential that is war. Perhaps this will help bring the poem and the reflections it generates in young readers to a new generation.
• 
  Chris

  Writing was to dry And I don't think it would make it as read aloud.
• 
  Kristine Blackmon

  The Poppy Lady: Moina Belle Michael and Her Tribute to Veterans is the profound story of an everyday school teacher emotionally distraught by the world at war and the want to do more for military members. From providing food, books, letters, and other forms of moral support to soldiers, she finds a way to symbolize her gratitude that ultimately becomes an American symbol and tradition.
  Through use of vibrant illustrations, delicate approaches in verbiage and illustrations to the topics of war, and the 7-10 age group it is leveled at, we can categorize this as children's literature. It can be classified as a picture book biography, as it based on the life and contribution of Moina Belle Michael and is rich in illustration and short on text, as depicted in chapter 14. The standard for picture book biographies hits at 32 pages according to chapter 14 and The Poppy Lady grazes that number at 40 pages.
  Following this in an interactive read aloud setting, for Memorial or Veteran's day the students could color in a Poppy print out and fill in the "Today I thank a veteran because _____" to be displayed in the hallway. If you enjoy this book, you may also enjoy Let's Celebrate Memorial Day.
• 
  Linda

  This biography tells the story of the woman who founded the tradition of wearing poppies to honor World War I's fallen soldiers and eventually all veterans in connection with Memorial Day. I had no idea one woman was the Poppy Lady capping off a lifetime of service especially to soldiers.
  
  Good information and beautifully illustrated.
  
• 
  Sandi

  My mom read this aloud to my boys (ages 11, 9, and 7) for Memorial Day. It was a lovely book with wonderfully illustrated pictures, full page and full of color. I specifically enjoyed the prologue and epilogue to the story which contained a bit more information about Moina Belle Michael. It was a lovely way to introduce Memorial Day holiday to my children.
• 
  Barbara Lovejoy

  What a BEAUTIFUL book!!! I learned a number of new things. The illustrations are wonderful. There are a number of other books I would like to read about this topic. The one I most want to read (and possibly own), "The Miracle Flower", by Moina Belle Michael herself. Yet the cost for it being over $200 is a little out of my reach.
• 
  Lynn

  I hope youngsters will finally understand the "poppy thing" after reading this.
  Full color illustrations, realistic but with soft edges, as if we're looking back in time.
  A great addition to the WWI shelf, and something to read to middle elementary students around Memorial Day.
• 
  Kim

  Moina Belle Michael is the woman behind wearing poppies to honor the war dead. I am concerned about the prologue as it glosses over the civil war and tries to create sympathy for the plantation owners.
• 
  Elida

  Just awesome!!
• 
  Sally

  An absolutely beautiful story, I think this book should be an annual read to every child on Veterans Day.
• 
  Holly

  Read while planning 100th Anniversary of Armistice Day library program for kids.
• 
  Addie

  What a great, forgotten story! Not only is it true, it inspires the reader to support our military and defenders we have now! Also, I think much more highly of poppies than I did before.
• 
  Alice

  I loved this book! I love the story and the pictures are FANTASTIC!! Great story!
  I LOVE poppies... I LOVE VETERANS
• 
  Norah Baron

  Really interesting book about why poppies are used for Memorial Day and Veteran’s day. The illustrations are amazing.
• 
  Kim

  What a beautiful book to honor those who have served our country.
• 
  Rebecca Caufman

  The story of a dedicated woman who did all she could to be supportive of our troops in WW1.
• 
  Trever

  Great history book.
• 
  Cathy Mealey

  An earnest tribute to the dedication of Moina Belle Michael, a schoolteacher from Georgia who was inspired by a poem to launch a national campaign establishing the red poppy as the symbol of sacrifice and courage of America’s soldiers.
  
  While searching through her father’s WWII memorabilia, ten year old Barbara Elizabeth Walsh found a postcard addressed to her mother with a red poppy pinned to one corner. Her father explained who “The Poppy Lady” was and how kind she had been to him and his soldier buddies during the war. Decades later, Barbara was inspired to research Moira’s story and write this beautiful, moving book for children. Layne Johnson’s light-bathed illustrations are soft and luminous.
  
  As a child, I loved buying and wearing red poppies on Memorial Day and Veteran’s Day. It was as much a part of our family tradition as attending the town parade and planting geraniums at the cemetery. Sadly, it has become far less common to find poppies being sold, and I have often resorted to asking local friends on Facebook to let me know where I can buy them! I am grateful for Barbara’s lovely book telling Moina’s story and ensuring that the red poppy tribute will endure.
  
  Bank Street College of Education for Best Books (2013), TriState Young Adult Book Review Committee for Books of Note (2013), Eureka! Silver Award (California Reading Association (2013).
  
  A portion of the book’s proceeds will support the National Military Family Association’s Operation Purple®, which benefits children of the U.S. military.