Read the excerpt from "Elizabeth Blackwell."

Over the next three weeks Elizabeth did think about the medical profession. In fact, she couldn't stop thinking about it, for Mary's words rang continually in her ears. Even her heart seemed to beat in the rhythm of "doctor . . . doctor . . . doctor." Finally, one night, as she tossed and turned in bed, she found she could bear it no longer. "I am applying to medical school," she declared.

The author makes this part of the story exciting by