Does anyone else remember the book series "The Great Brain"

[bunnybartlett]

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Great_Brain



I may be too old......

These were some of my favorite reads as a child. I still remember anxiously awaiting the newest one from the book store.

[ebethmom]

I loved these books! I can't remember how many I've read, but I know I haven't read the very latest. The Wiki article mentioned that the last book was constructed following the late author's notes. I'll be interested to find this series for my ds. I hope they package them as a set.

We're going to the bookstore tomorrow and it's my ds's birthday! We'll have to look for these.

[FancyD]

Loved them! I found three of them when I was pregnant, and bought them for future reading. Encyclopedia Brown was another favorite.

[Justmee]

They were my favorites too! I see only 2 are in print at the moment. I wanted to get them for my kids. I hope they go back in print in the next few years.

[bunnybartlett]

awwwww

I forgot all about Encyclopedia brown!! those are great too!!

[tammyw]

never heard of them. what age range are they targeted?

[jamie79]

We just bought The Great Brain for my 6 year old son. He loves it so far! It was a favorite of my DH when he was a boy, so he wanted our DS to read it, too.

[LookMommy!]

My kids loved them, as did I. I would say ages 7-12. My Jewish Israeli modern kids were totally able to relate to these old-fashioned Utah kids, and loved the part when they got their first flush toilet! We listened to the audio tapes on a long drive then got the books from used bookstores. Especially great stories for boys, and the main characters have chores that make my own kids feel quite spoiled.

[4evermom]

I started reading the first one to ds but he is not getting into it. Maybe when he is a little older... He is just turning 7. I did read the entire Chronicles of Narnia to him so it isn't an attention span issue, more of a subject issue.

Anyway, there are some serious parts in the Great Brain books. In the first, a Jewish shopkeeper starves to death because no one really pays attention to the fact he has stopped buying food (because no one is buying from his store and he has no money). Some kids get lost in a cave but they are OK. There are things like whippings (the teacher whips the Great Brain in the first book). The kids have a pecking order established by fighting so there is a good bit of emphasis on being a good enough fighter to beat up the other kids (just once to prove they can so the other kids treat them with respect).

But, none the less, I loved the books when I was a kid and still do.

[MeepyCat]

I loved these when I was a kid!

Some parts were kind of rough (in "Me and My Little Brain", the adopted baby brother is kidnapped and held hostage, and one of the older brothers kills the man holding him), but I enjoyed them nonetheless. Don't go in expecting that the books will be all sweet and funny fluff, but I would read them to my son when he's older.

[chaos_pie]

We just read a few of these last year. My ds thought they were terrific-- I thought some of the content was really useful to have conversations about-- ie, the shopkeeper, and also about reservations.

[Sneezykids]

I read and enjoyed all the GB books when I was a kid. Tom was an ingenious kid with a lot of depth to his character with his compassionate (remember when he helped the little girl to read with the wood blocks?) as well as his swindling ways.

I loved the Great Brain at the Academy when he snuck out to buy all the candy bars, jacked up the prices and sold them to his classmates for a profit. LOL.

[eilonwy]

I loved those books.