George Washington Carver was born into slavery in January 1860 on the Moses Carver Plantation in Diamond Grove, Missouri. He spent the first year of his life, the brutal days of the border war, between Missouri and neighboring Kansas. George was a very sickly child with whooping cough, which later led to his speech impediment, and was small and frail. George's father, James Carver, died one day in a lumbering accident while he was carrying wood to his master's house. George was very ill during his early years. In 1861, when George was one year old, raiders kidnapped him and his mother and horses from their home in Missouri. Moses Carver, Mary's master, learned that a bushwhacker named Bentley knew where Mary and little George were. Moses offered him 40 acres of his best woods and Pacer, one of his best horses. Bentley accepted the offer and began the chase to Arkansas. Bentley returned a few days later with only young George in a bundle and no sign of Mary. A few years later, in the spring, little George was in the woods scraping the earth. When someone was sick, George collected roots, herbs, and bark, which he boiled to make medicine. Carver grew up to be a student of life and a scholar, despite the illness and frailty of his early childhood. Since she was not strong enough to work in the fields, she helped with household chores and gardening. Probably because of these tasks and the hours he spent exploring the woods around his home, he developed a keen interest in plants from an early age. Neighbors called George the plant doctor because he made house-to-house visits in Diamond Grove to prescribe diseased plants. George had his own mini garden where he tended diseased plants in paper, he helped create and discover many different uses for items like peanuts and sweet potatoes. This book was very vivid in describing all the difficulties, hard work and effort put in by George Washington Carver in his research. I learned that George was very dedicated to his research and it showed in many ways. George donated his entire estate to allow his research to continue, which forces me to strive to do better for myself. Overall, this book gave me a real role model that I could strive to be like. Reading the book I realized that George never gave up no matter how many people fought him. I also learned that just because you're slow or have a disability doesn't mean you're not smart. Now I know that I have to believe in myself and not let others belittle or belittle me and I am grateful for his contribution. Word count: 1247