The Great Brain

The Great Brain
By John D. Fitzgerald

This book, the first in the humorous Great Brain series, was published way back in 1967 but takes place when the author was a little boy, growing up in small town Utah way, way back in 1896. I learned a lot about what life was like back then--getting the first indoor toilet in town, making homemade ice cream with a wooden, crank ice cream maker and ice from a frozen pond, and the types of games kids played before there was television or--gasp!--computer games. However, the types of games include things that are kind of unacceptable nowadays, like "Cowboys and Indians." There are many references to Indians, in fact, and many of them are not very kind or accurate. But that's how a lot of white folks--especially those new to the West--viewed the local tribes, so it gives a critical reader something to think about.
Mostly the story is about little John D. getting swindled by his older brother, Tom, who is a smart kid, and always looking for a way to make money (a few pennies, or a whole dollar was a LOT of money back then!). There are other important--and tragic--parts of the story, however, like when the mostly-Mormon community realizes a Jewish man new to town has allowed himself to starve to death rather than ask for charity. Or the cruel treatment of a family of Greek immigrants by some of the townsfolk.
All in all, The Great Brain is a surprisingly funny tale of brotherhood, childhood, and changing attitudes in small town America at the turn of the last century.