Published by Charlesbridge
Summary: When Earle Dickson married Josephine in 1917, he noticed she was accident prone, often cutting or burning herself in the kitchen, then trying to clean up with the nearest rag. As the son of a doctor, Earle didn’t want her injuries to get infected, so he stuck some sterile gauze on a long strip of adhesive tape. Josephine would cut off what she needed to bandage her wound. Earle convinced his boss, James Johnson, to mass produce these bandages, calling them Band-Aids, but they didn’t really catch on until they were turned into individually-wrapped bandages and distributed for free to Boy Scouts and World War II soldiers. After the war, Band-Aids really took off, and today they come in all kinds of sizes and designs and are used around the world. Includes an author’s note, timeline, and additional resources. 32 pages; ages 4-8.
Pros: A cute story of the invention of something we all take for granted with appealing illustrations that have the feel of a retro magazine ad.
Cons: I didn’t really enjoy reading about the details of Josephine’s kitchen injuries.
