Recommended Ages: Gr.

Plot Summary: Dr. Martin Couney believes strongly in Dr. Budin's invention of an incubator for premature babies. He shows off the invention at the Berlin Exposition of 1896 but without babies inside, hospitals and doctors don't believe in it. Knowing he has to put babies inside, Dr. Couney applies to show his inventions as part of the sideshows. Thinking it won't take long before hospitals purchase the incubators, he is surprised when it takes years and years and years. The money he gets from sideshow tickets is enough to pay the nurses who take excellent care of the babies. The babies have an 80% survival rate, which is unheard of for premature babies at the time. Will he ever get hospitals to purchase the incubators?

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Dr. Budin - doc in Paris in 19th century who made the connection between a chicks heat lamp and premature babies
Martin Couney - young doctor working under Dr. Budin who was sent to Berlin Exposition of 1896.

Recurring Themes: premature babies, survival, seeing is believing, passion, perseverance

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Personal Thoughts: This is a part of history I did not know. The perseverance and care that Dr. Couney gave to these babies is absolutely amazing.

Genre: narrative biography

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Amazing story of the long, long (40 years) process to get hospitals to attempt to save premature babies.
For 40 years, these tiny babies were sideshows, and most survived; attentive nurses and doctors oversaw their care - people paid 10-25 cents to walk through and see the tiny babies. ( )