Papa's Pearls by Diane Flynn Keith - A Review

Oh, how I love a good book review! This latest selection was the charming book Papa's Pearls by Diane Flynn Keith. This pretty little paperback is a quick read, with just over 100 pages and 17 chapters.
The title of the book is really a summary of what you'll find inside. This is a beautiful memoir of her father, Carol Joseph Flynn, and the wisdom that he passed down to his children and grandchildren.

"Papa", as he was called by his family, grew up in the Depression Era and was rapidly heading down the wrong path in life. He could have stayed on that course and even found himself in prison, but a stint in "continuation school" fortunately turned him around, and he eventually became a successful husband and father.

This book is a blend of personal accounts from the author, her siblings, and their children. A lovely tribute. What really shines through is the love of Papa, and the profound impact that his life and experiences had on his entire family.
He is portrayed as a real man, a common sense kind of guy who has plenty of street smarts, yet is not too macho to express his love and affection for his family. His "pearls" of wisdom are offered in phrases passed down to his children like " Tell yourself you like it", "You gotta do what you gotta do", "What's the worst that could happen?", and "Get it in writing". You know, old school common sense.


This is really an adult or parenting book, but after first skimming through, I decided to use this as a read aloud with my kids (ages 7 and 9 years). It's clean, funny, touching, and there's just a lot to be learned from this man. I found no objectionable material, there were only a few sentences/paragraphs that I skipped over when reading to the kids.

I wasn't sure how they would like it, but they took to it right away, and there was more than one occasion where my older daughter especially, requested at least 4 chapters at one sitting.
We've read a few other books based in the Depression Era, and this was one reason they were interested. The other? They just found it funny! (Their words)

The bottom line- I loved this book, and recommend it to anyone. Parents, educators, families, it's a good read. Read it and see if you agree :)




Papa's Pearls

Price: Get an autographed copy of this book from the author for $21.97 ($14.97 + $7.00 shipping)
            You can also purchase from Amazon for $13.47 + shipping


Ages: Adult/Parent/Personal Growth- However, I used this as a read aloud with my 7 and 10 year old.


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