Anybody Can Do Anything

I discovered Betty MacDonald when I was about twelve years old, after checking The Egg and I out of the Carmichael Branch library here in Sacramento, about 22 years after it was first published. My parents had mentioned that the egg ranch Betty lived on with her first husband in the 1920s, which she writes about in The Egg and I, was located some miles from the place where we lived in Washington state, in the late 1950s. Furthermore, they had actually taken a day trip with friends to look at the old place, sometime after the book and the movie of the same name came out in the 1940s. This familial connection, however faint, to an old, famous book and the movies it inspired, piqued my childish mind, and I eagerly started reading about life on a chicken ranch on the Olympic Penninsula. I fell in love with Betty's easy, friendly, hysterically funny, down-to-earth yet somehow elegant prose, and immediately checked out her other autobiographical books: The Plague and I, Anybody Can Do Anything, and Onions In The Stew. In all of her autobiographical books save Onions In The Stew, Betty uses the first chapter to presage her theme by describing her experiences as a child in a large, boisterous family, in loving and extremely funny detail. In Anybody Can Do Anything, Betty describes life with her family and her two young daughters, Anne and Joan, in Seattle after she has left her husband and the egg ranch behind. The Depression is on, and Betty, now a single mother, struggles with her large and interesting clan to make ends meet, somehow finding a lot of laughs and funny adventures, often with her exuberant sister Mary, the inspiration for the book, along the way. Anyone who is interested in what life was like in Seattle in the 1930s, in witty character descriptions, and in a personal glimpse of how families coped with the "Great Depression", will find this book fascinating, not to mention frequently hilarious. Betty, I miss you and the way you used to make me laugh out loud--I was sad when I finished reading Onions In The Stew for the first time and then realized it was the last autobiographical book you wrote: the tuberculosis finally caught up with you in 1958, when I was only four years old, still living in Washington, not far from your home on Vashon Island. I re-read your books many times as I grew up, even visited Vashon Island, and often wished I could have met you and your family. It's silly, but I've always felt a sense of loss at never having known you, because I am sure you must have been a marvelous friend. Your sense of humor had a profound effect on me, and inspired me in my earliest writing attempts. It's been many years since I've read your books, but I've never forgotten your irrepressible, bona-fide funniness. Wherever you are, thank you!

This is a sweet, wonderful book about the a family living through the depression in a Seattle that bears little resemblance to the blandly affluent city that today bears its name. The writing is still fresh and entertaining even though the book is more than fifty years old. This is a great book for kids, as it explains the realities of the depression in a way that is much more understandable than most historical accounts. I first read it in 1977 when I was 12, and it gave me a wonderful insight into the lives of my depression generation parents.I would recommend that everyone search out Betty's books and read them over and over, especially if you are a resident of Seattle or its environs. They are marvelous books from a marvelous author.

This sweet, magical book is one of my favorites. This is a memoir of life in the Depression in Seattle, Washington. It is one of a set of four books by Mrs MacDonald: THE EGG AND I, ANYBODY CAN DO ANYTHING, THE PLAGUE AND I, and ONIONS IN THE STEW.Betty MacDonald's sister, Mary Bard, also wrote at least three books: THE DOCTOR WEARS THREE FACES, FORTY ODD and THE BEST YOU CAN BE (I am a little unsure of the last title). Mary Bard is one of the major characters in ANYBODY CAN DO ANYTHING, and is almost as delightful as Betty MacDonald herself.I recommend all of Betty MacDonald's books.

FYI: The Betty MacDonald Books are no longer out of print. They are now being published by Akadine Press. In fact AP is beginning to publish quite a collection of quality, formerly out of print titles by various authors. (I am a librarian, and recieve catalogs from various sources.) --Thought I would pass the info along. The phone # for Akadine Press is: 1-800-832-7323. They are located in Pleasantville, NY.

I have read and re-read each and every one of Betty MacDonald's Books. Simply cannot think of a writer that matches her brilliance in humour! If any of you other devotees know of any similar authors, I would be most grateful for the information. You may also want to check out the following: Ann Combs "Smith College Never Taught me to Salute" If you like Betty MacDonald, you'll like this one too!!!