Cheaper by the Dozen by Frank B. Gilbreth, Jr. and Ernestine Gilbreth Carey
“Here’s the story…” Imagine the Bradys-only funnier, smarter, riding around in an old jalopy instead of the trusty station wagon, living in the early 1900’s, and twelve of them instead of six–and you’ve got the Gilbreth family! Dad Gilbreth is a motion study engineer, (the study of how to do things more efficiently) and the easiest way to test out his theories is to practice them on his kids. Now, that may not sound too bad, except sometimes Dad is a little too efficient…like the time when one kid gets tonsillitis and he decides that it’s more cost-effective to set up an operating table in the living room and take out EVERYONE’S tonsils. But Dad also makes learning stuff a whole lotta fun-like when he paints messages in Morse code all over the walls of the summer house that lead to treats for the first person to decipher the code. Things are always hoppin’ at the Gilbreth place, and its’ more entertaining than “Malcolm in the Middle” and “The Simpsons” combined! And did I mention this is all a TRUE story?? A nice old lady sold me a battered paperback of this book at a garage sale (the best way to discover classics) and it’s been one of my favorites ever since.