A small blue hardback book with the title and author printed in black across the top of the spine and the insignia of the Lutterworth Press across the foot. The title is repeated on the fly leaf, on the back of which is a list of the Stories of Faith and Fame Series, of which this is one, presented as though for young people. The title page has the title in large print at the top, and beneath it, in black italics, a subtitle: The Story of Dr. Barnardo, beneath which is the author and the Publisher at the foot, as from London.
On the reverse is the publication date and the ISBN, above the printers notice: Ebenezer Baylis and Sons Ltd. from Worcester and London.
The fourteen chapters are all given labels with immediate appeal, and occupy 96 pages; there are no accompanying references or illustrations.
Comment:Barnardo presented for young readers as one of a series of people famous for their faith.
Each chapter succinctly tells in narrative form one of the incidents of Barnardo's life concerned with children in language remniscent of his own and other accounts in the magazines such as Night and Day and Bubbles associated with his work, and on page 49 the Doctor himself is presented as telling the story of Punch - a boy pick-pocket who was rescued and converted to Christianity - whereas, on page 60, Tammy - a post-traumatic amputee - is presented in all vividness as an example of Barnardo's very specific work in the service of crippled children. Chapter 10 presents Barnardo's love for, and marriage to, Syrie Elmslie as the providential means whereby he acquired firstly a house, and then a whole village for the needy orphan children. Finally, the frenetic fund-raising activity required to meet the ever-pressing needs of homelss children culminates in his quiet and relatively sudden death while resting his head on Syrie's arm, and the loss to the children within the Homes is seen as that of a close friend. The last short chapter, headed 'Today,' is a reminder of the needs of the many children, particularly at Christmas time.
Comment:Perhaps every volume in this series shares this blend of eloquence and appeal to the young.
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