I enjoyed this story of the many incarnations of this intriguing woman. Driven by her self-proclaimed patriotism and an early desire or need to "hide," Sarah Emma Edmonds managed to play some interesting roles in her life. I would have liked to learn a bit more about what happened to Sarah after she decided to resume her life as a woman and how long it was before it was realized that Frank Thompson had actually never existed, except as her alter identity. The book ends with "Sarah Emma Edmonds was a fantastic pretender. No one had a clue." When did people find out? And was the revelation controversial? The bibliography references a 2005 biography that would likely answer these questions.

Curricular connections: Considering the book left me with so many questions, a study of the sources the author used would be a great way to dig further into the life of this intriguing woman. The process would also reveal the many layers to biography, depending on the age group for which the author is writing. ( )

Sarah Emma Edmonds started pretending at a very early age. Her father only wanted sons, so Sarah pretended to be one. Unlike most kids, though, Sarah never really stopped pretending. In 1861, during the U.S. Civil War, Sarah pretended her way into the Union Army, becoming a male nurse named Frank Thompson. Being a nurse didn't quite satisfy "Frank," though. She wanted to keep her fellow soldiers from getting hurt. So when the Union Army needed a spy, she leapt at the chance. While still pretending to be Frank, Sarah also pretended to be a male African American slave, a female Irish peddler, and a female African American laundress. She slipped behind enemy lines time after time, spied on the Confederate Army, and brought back valuable intelligence to the Union. Sarah was not only good at pretending; she was also very brave. Later in life, Sarah Emma Edmonds wrote a book to tell her story. She explained, "I am naturally fond of adventure, a little ambitious, and a good deal romantic." She was also truly a great pretender.

This book is about a women names Sarah who is from Canada. He dad was very mean because she was not a boy so that is when Sarah's pretending began, as a boy. She ran away from home and pretended to be many different people over her life time. She did good deeds while she was pretending and never really missed the true Sarah.
I liked this book because it kept me wondering what she was going to pretend next. There was a new places on each page with a new adventure awaiting. the pictures were mad you feel welcomed into the story as if you were pretending with her.
An extension of this book could be showing what happened at the end of her life span. Such as did she go back to being Sarah or did she did pretending and only certain people knew the truth. Another extension could be showing a real page out of her journal the is still a mystery to everyone. Such as was she someone else that we did not discuss causing the reading to research it. ( )

I really enjoyed this biography of Sarah Emma Edmonds story. She lead a brave, thrilling and secret life. My second grade students were captivated by her story and wanted to learn more. The suggested biography list at the close of the story was a great resource as well. I utilized this story to introduce students to biographies. ( )

Author: Carrie Jones
Title: Sarah Emma Edmonds Was a Great Pretender
Illustrator: Mark Oldroyd
Publisher: Carolrhoda Books-A division of Lerner Publishing Group, Inc.
2011
26 pages
Literary Genre: Biography
Sarah Emma Edmonds was born girl and her dad mis treated her and she always wanted to be a boy so she always pretended to be one. She eventually joined the army and did different jobs throughout. She went back and forth from pretending to be a boy to being a girl.
I thought that this book was different. I thought that it was a cute book and I think that any tom boy young girl can relate to it.