American Nightingale: The Story of Frances Slanger, Forgotten Heroine of Normandy

As a nurse that has retired from that field, I read this book and was touched beyond words about the person Frances Slanger and the nurse and heroine Frances Slanger. I am an avid reader and love to read about WWII era; this book opened a new area of history that hasnt been adequately covered. It is well written and I highly recommend!

I just finished reading American Nightingale. What a FANTASTIC book. The story of Frances Slanger is truly inspirational and the greatest testament to this inspiration, and to her heroism came from the very men that she cared for while in Europe. I am an avid reader of WWII books and I rank this up there as one of the best that I've ever read. Great job!

Award-winning journalist and author Welch has rediscovered World War II heroine, Frances Slanger, a Jewish Polish immigrant whose story has never been fully told. Slanger overcame poverty and discrimination to become a nurse, then courageously and selflessly served her adopted country in an Army medical unit. Welch takes us with Slanger's unit from its landing with D-Day invasion forces on the Normandy beaches Normandy, across France just behind the front lines to the borders of Germany as the team provides medical care to thousands of wounded soldiers. On the night before her unit was attacked, Slanger wrote a letter to the military newspaper "Stars and Stripe", affirming her dedication to helping the wounded, expressing her admiration for the American soldier and downplaying her own contribution. The letter inspired a country hungry for signs of human goodness and triggered an outpouring of emotion at the news of her death. will bring tears to your eyes. It reminds us the true meaning of courage at a time when, again, inspiration is sorely needed.

Like British Army Nurse Florence Nightingale before her, and American Army Nurse Sharon Ann Lane (KIA, 312th Evac., Chu Lai, 1969, Vietnam) after her, Frances Slanger was a true heroine.Bob Welch struck gold when a former Nursing comrade of Slanger's read one of his articles and got in touch. Previously, details about Frances Slanger had been slightly scant and it had been reported that she had been killed by an Enemy sniper. Welch gets it right in indicating that she had actually been killed during an artillery barrage.Even by Day 3, the slowly expanding Normandy beach heads were a dangerous place to be. Despite overwhelming Allied airpower, involving thousands of combat sorties per day, the Germans were still putting up determined resistance on the ground.Even the act of wading ashore was not without its dangers, especially given that Frances Slanger was barely five feet tall. She was one of only four nurses to land at Normandy while it was still an intensely active combat zone. Yet in spite of the mines, the snipers, the artillery exchanges and the odd air attack, Slanger and her courageous sisters pitched in immediately to help care for the endless influx of wounded. A few months later, she became the first Army Nurse KIA of the post-Overlord campaign.While ever America can still produce women like Frances Slanger and Sharon Ann Lane, and men like the brave young warriors that they gave their own young lives to support, the enemies of Freedom will never win.Never.An outstanding book.

In American Nightingale, Bob Welch demonstrates a capacity rare inwriters: a perceptive talent who respects history as he chronicles thequietly profound legacy of one heroic individual who made a difference -Frances Slanger, Army nurse. The book is a treasure because of the writer'spersistent research, his weaving of Slanger's words with his own to tell hercompelling story, and the ultimate truth that he confirms for all of us -that war cannot and will not ever crush the unconquerable human spirit.For me, this is one of those "Couldn't Put It Down" reads!