Set in the early 1900s, The Great Brain is the
tale of the Fitzgerald brothers growing up in Utah. The book starts with the narrator, young J.D., telling of the
time that their family was the first in their neighborhood to get a water
closet in their home. His older
brother, Tom D., known as the “great brain” for his habit of coming up with
money-making schemes, charges local children one penny each for the privilege
of seeing the new cesspool being dug in their back yard. Of course, when their mother learns of this
scam, she gets mad and insists Tom refunds all the money.

Another recurrent theme in these stories is the importance
of fighting skills for boys. J.D. and
his friends are clear that in order to earn respect for other boys, they need
to be able to stick up for themselves, and the ability to deliver a sound
thrashing to others is therefore essential. 
Not that they enjoy the violence or pick fights with others, but their
developing masculinity is largely based on physical strength and agility. It’s unusual these days to find a children’s
story that so endorses such old fashioned values; part of the explanation for
this is that the book was written in 1967, rather before the time that concern
for children’s welfare led to the censorship of brutality from children’s
literature.

Author John D. Fitzgerald based these stories on his
own childhood, and he certainly has the ability to tell a story well. The Great Brain embodies
old-fashioned values such as loyalty, ingenuity, and physical prowess, and it’s
often quite funny. The unabridged
audiobook, read by Ron McLarty, is entertaining and may appeal to
younger children, especially boys.

Link: Publisher’s
web page for this book with RealAudio excerpt.

© 2002 Christian Perring. All rights reserved.

Christian
Perring, Ph.D., is Chair of the Philosophy Department at Dowling College,
Long Island. He is editor of Metapsychology Online Review. His main
research is on philosophical issues in psychiatry. He is especially interested
in exploring how philosophers can play a greater role in public life, and he is
keen to help foster communication between philosophers, mental health
professionals, and the general public.

Categories: Children