I was fortunate enough to get an autographed copy at the AASL Conference in Charlotte. I read the entire book on the flight home. This book focuses on the eccentric Grandma Dowdel, whom we met in Long Way From Chicago and Year Down Under. It's 1958 in a rural Illinois town and Barnhart family has moved in next door to Grandma Dowdel. Told from the point of view of 12-year-old Bobby, the story focuses on Bobby's parents, a new (and poverty-sticken) young minister and his wife. True to the time period, we meet Ruth Ann, Bobby's little sister, who carries her Davy Crocket lunch box to school; Phyllis, his teen-age sister, whose room is decorated with Elvis posters. This is a great read aloud - chapters describe a bullying incident in which Bobby is rescued by Mrs. Dowdel, a haunted melon patch, and a Christmas wedding. It's funny but even more so, it's a story about friendship, family, and special gifts. Joey's son (Joey and Mary Alice in Long Way From Chicago, 1929-31) appears in a Christmas visit to Grandma Dowdel.
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