Arlington: The Story of Our Nation's Cemetery
In the format of a picture book, but with a longer text, this handsome volume presents the history of Arlington National Cemetery. Telling and illustrating the story with quiet dignity, Demarest begins by noting that the rolling, wooded landscape overlooking the Potomac looks calm today, but it was not always so. Robert E. Lee lived at Arlington House with his family before the Civil War, but after his decision to side with his native Virginia during the Civil War, his home became a target for Union forces, and the land around it a cemetery for Northern troops. Since then it has become a national cemetery for soldiers who died in every American war since the Revolution. Demarest writes clearly, organizes the information well, and illustrates the story in nicely composed, sometimes luminous paintings. Back matter includes a time line, an author’s note, recommended books and Internet sites, and lists of significant individuals buried at Arlington and some of the memorials there. Grades 3-5. --Carolyn Phelan