4 out of 4 stars
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It feels like such an awfully long time since my siblings and I sat in a circle round my grandmother as she told us stories of her childhood. This book helped me recapture the good feelings we used to have back then, and I can just picture mama as we called her, in her armchair, entertaining us until we fell asleep one after the other.
Papa and Mama said: is made up of 331 pages of the author’s beautiful childhood experiences in a society free from the clutches of materialism. In it, she describes members of her family, her neighbors, as well as her experiences with some of the other people they had to interact with growing up. Her family lived in poverty; each member often had just one dress, and would only get another when the old one was worn out. They would sometimes get materials discarded by other people, and fashion them into things they needed. Old garments were never thrown away; they were used as rags instead. Yet, they have had a happy and contented life in spite of their want.
All the happy stories in this book just lend weight to the fact that a lack of money does not doom one to misery. Rather, contentment and good relationships with people bring great joy. Even as adults with families of their own, the older kids still kept in touch with their parents and siblings; in some cases even moving back home to be closer to them. In this extremely busy society of ours, it is so easy to get caught up in day to day living that we forget to make time for our loved ones. The importance of giving and receiving love to our overall state of mind cannot be overemphasized.
Of course, there are other charming characters in this book, and I will describe a few of them here. One is Uncle John Henry, the old house owner who had them move into his spacious house in a more affluent neighborhood. Then dirty Crook Neck, who looked like he never had a bath. Also Miss Polly, the kindly storekeeper, and ugly Miss Nellie Rawls, who was rumored to have been given to her husband’s best friend in exchange for a swipe net. Some of these characters are quite funny, and their stories make a very enjoyable read.
This book contains a lot of folklore and colloquialisms. Some of these are quite funny while a few of them are thoughtful. The kids had fun speaking what they called “Pig Latin”, and Lucinda G. Baum was gracious enough to include the principle behind it and exactly how to learn it. They also had a prank they called “Glunderclinching.” What a nasty prank that was!
I really enjoyed this book and was a little dismayed when I got to the end; I wished the story would continue. I rate this book 4 out of 4 stars. It is a total package of fun and wisdom and I heartily recommend it to everyone who enjoys memoirs. Lucinda, thank you for sharing your delightful stories.
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Papa and Mama Said:
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