Customer Reviews

Anybody Can Do Anything

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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!

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.

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.

Betty's greatest gift was for presenting situations that, in themselves, are far from funny, in a totally hilarious style. I've probably read this book annually for the past 35 years, and it never fails to delight.

Since my parents were of the Depression era, I had heard many a sad story from them and their friends, and Betty's knack for presenting her story with wry, often irreverent humour shows a genius of perspective. She manages to keep the reader laughing throughout descriptions of such "un-funny" matters as being unemployed, dealing with cruel bill collectors, temporary jobs in unfriendly offices, and having one's shoes disintegrate during a winter storm.

The Bards were clearly a very original, free-spirited family, and it appears that they'd gone from reasonably well off to poor. The cast of characters is delightful - from Mary's "unofficial employment agency," to Dede's singing commercials, to Mother's jack of all trades accomplishments and unflapping ability to deal with bill collectors. The chapter on blind dates is as true as it is hilarious, and many of the descriptions of Betty's jobs (my favourite being when she tinted photographs) make one nearly believe that it must have been great fun to be chronically unemployed.

This is a fun and by no means "self-help" book, yet I can honestly say that, for all of these years, I've called Betty's positive attitude, where one may laugh at circumstances that could have been miserable, to mind many times when I faced difficulties of my own. (Though I, as well, often regretted winters when I charged five green party dresses!)

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!!!

we get the story of what she and the children did with themselves.

Her father had been a mining engineer, and although he died fairly young he had been able to save quite a bit; her mother had come from a 'good' East Coast family--not REALLY rich, but apparently quite well off. Betty and her siblings had grown up in large houses with music and dance lessons. However, the Great Depression reduced the family's portfolio to wastepaper. The children had never been taught to actually *do* anything, and actually going out to work for a living was something that they (especially the daughters) had never thought that they would have to do.

The story of how they scrambled to make ends meet during the 1930s would have been grim, but the Bard family despises self-pity above all other faults, and Betty is able to find humor in any situation.

After women having to work to survive during the 1930s, and having to work in the 1940s when all the men were off to war, is it any wonder that the women of this generation and their daughters wanted to retreat into domesticity during the 1950s?

Betty MacDonald has been one of my favorite authors since I first read "The Egg and I" in junior high. "Anybody Can do Anything" is a poignant yet funny account of making things do during depression Seattle. Betty's large and varied family life, her attempts at finding jobs and then, once found, keeping the wages earned reminds me of how difficult things must have been during this era. Ms. MacDonald is one of my all-time favorite authors, giving me many hours of enjoyment and many quotes to amuse my friends

This book is hard to find, so if you get the chance, snap it up!
This is a hilarious account of the author's life post-"Egg & I."
Betty moves from the chicken ranch back to her family's home in Seattle.
Sister Mary, undaunted by the fact that Betty has no experience, eagerly launches Betty's business career and social life.
The mishaps that ensue are absolutely hilarious.
Skillfully written, this book makes the Depression a laugh riot.
BUY IT!
I only wish that Betty had written more books.

When ever I'm down, and I have been for the last year. I read this book. It's my favorite book. Betty is better than therapy.