"Centerburg Tales" by Robert McCloskey (1951)

This is the 2^nd of the Homer Price books by Robert McCloskey. The book opens in Centerburg, the town which sits just a couple of miles from Homer’s home at the intersection of two highways. Mr. McCloskey has a way of getting right to the heart of the matter when it comes to children’s things, and he starts off with a chapter called "The Hide –A-Ride".

The kids in town all know and love Grandpa Hercules; whom they call Uncle Herc for short; and he is a big part of their lives as they go about their daily lives. He spins stories while they spin tops, and he manages to infuse all of his tales; true or not; with a bit of local history. In this chapter he spins an unlikely, though wonderful tale about a ride he helped to build for the Indian natives way back when.

That endeavor involved a barrel rolling down hill, which had an intoxicating effect on the Indians, but was bad for the barrels. So, Grandpa Herc invented the Hide-A Ride, which was a mechanized way for the barrel to be spun without destroying it each time. It’s kind of a Rube Goldberg contraption, with a wonderful illustration by the author for the more unimaginative. This story would probably be politically incorrect by today’s standard, illustrating just how “enlightened”; or thin skinned; we have become.

In "Sparrow Courthouse" the author spins the yarn about the time the town of Sparrow got their days and nights mixed up by following the time on the Courthouse clock without question. A stranger passing through realizes that the problem is being caused by the sparrows sitting on the hands of the clock, making time move slower in a sense. By the time the stranger is able to convince the town of the cause, they have been living night by day, and day by night. (This story was written at the beginning of the HUACC hearings and I can’t help but wonder if this is a sly poke at blind loyalty.)

Grandpa Herc has had many experiences, all of which he eagerly shares with the kids of Centerburg. Like the time he went hunting for gold in California. His adventures there with Hopper McThud are so enthralling that at one point Grandpa has the crowd so mesmerized that they are all looking at the luncheonette ceiling as he describes a cliff hundreds of feet in the air. This guy is some story teller!

One day Grandpa gets a package from Gravity-Bitties, a breakfast food for champion jumpers. This cereal is so potent that it comes with a chunk of lead to put inside your coat to keep you from jumping too far. But Grandpa is wiser than all of the advertisements and proves his wisdom by not eating the Gravity-Bitties and jumping far anyway. His point was proving that the advertising people don’t know what they are talking about. Heck, he fed the cereal to the chickens!

From Homers experiments at home to the goings on at the barbershop, these stories are emblematic of what life was like in the years after the Second World War. In so many ways we were at the acme of our strength and influence as a nation. Socially there were still kinks to be worked out in the areas of Civil Rights and poverty, but for the most part these was the best of times. And in Robert McCloskey’s books about Homer Price those times are palpable.

"70 Most Unforgettable Characters" - Reader's Digest (1967)

The binder of this volume of short narratives was the only portion of the cover with any writing on it, hence the unusual, at least for me, display of the book cover above. This is a perfect book for vacations, or sitting around the airport waiting for a plane. Filled with 70 of the most wonderful, and unforgettable characters, just as it says on the cover, this book will inspire you as well as make you laugh out loud.

When I was a young boy I used to eagerly read the “My Most Unforgettable Person” story in every Reader’s Digest I came across. And, in those days, they were everywhere. I even remember reading them at my Grandmother Nana’s house. Barbershops, shoeshine parlors; you name the place and there was a Reader’s Digest in there somewhere. It might be an older issue- but they still had my favorite feature in them.

This book is the same as those old issues were. There is something; or should I say someone; in here for everybody. There are accounts of the obscure, such as elevator operators; and also the recollections of newspapermen, doctors, writers, and so much more between these plain looking covers.

Without going into detail about all of the 70 people represented here, I will give you a glimpse of my favorites. There is the account by Jackie Robinson and his admiration for Branch Rickey when he integrated major league baseball in the era of Jim Crow.

There is also the story of a delicatessen owner who becomes friends with a Supreme Court Justice, to the betterment of both men. Journalist H.L. Mencken is remembered by author H. Allen Smith; Cole Porter is fondly recalled by a friend who tells of the debilitating pain which the composer suffered for 35 years; all the while with a smile on his face and a song in his heart. On the way to the hospital after the initial accident which caused his lifelong pain, he finished the lyrics to “You’ll Never Know.”

Not only the famous are represented here; there are stories of Preachers, Nuns, and even working men and women who have made a difference in the lives of others. For instance, there is the story of Oddie Cox, an educator of the so-called “Negro Schools” in North Carolina during the days of Jim Crow. He had been the Principal of the Institution he ran, but only gets his teaching certificate 20 years after first enrolling; not because he didn’t attend; but because he took only courses which would benefit his students when he passed that knowledge onto them. The College Board awarded him a degree based on his accumulated knowledge, and the way in which he used that to better the lives of others.

The stories of a woman Chimney Sweep; helicopter pioneer Igor Sikorsky; and Pearl S. Buck’s account of an old Chinese Empress, all make this a wonderfully fulfilling read. There is literally something in here to satisfy anyone who might pick it up. Ma Pullen, of Pullen House fame in Alaska, is a great example.

And, as always with this type of book, you can pick it up and open to any chapter to begin, making it a perfect book for the beach, as well as the aforementioned airports. If the book is not available at your local library, then you can pick this one up on line for less than $5 bucks. Sue picked this one up in a basket full of books she bought last weekend at an auction. She bought the basket, but I’m reading the books.