reviews
No Instructions Needed: An American Boyhood in the 1950s by Robert G. Hewitt.
This was such an enjoyable read, I finished the book in two days. It brought back so many memories of the games the neighborhood boys used to play, sometimes even the girls (including me and my two sisters) would join in. There was a little tomboy in us. The illustrations were by the author and quite fun. Cindy Replogle, Library Thing Early Reviewer
A charming book of nostalgia. Makes me want to go back to the "good old days." A really good read in this depressing climate. Karen L. Redding, Amazon Review
I liked this book.....I really liked this book. Perhaps it had a bit to do with identifying with what the author had to say - I'm about the same age as him and recall growing up with much the same frame of reference... This is a wonderful read and one that I highly recommend for anyone wanting to capture the feel of those long ago days of growing up. Ed Brodzinsky, Library Thing Early Reviewer
I THOROUGHLY enjoyed this book. It covers the time frame of my own growing up. So many neat places (and some not so neat) to visit once again. Brought back many memories that have been in hibernation in my mind. They say once you leave home, you can never go back. I beg to differ - this book allows you to do just that. J. Fields, Amazon Review
In his introduction, the author, talking about his boyhood, says, "It was a lot of fun". And so was this read. Nothing happened - no mysteries were solved, no shocking discoveries found, no dark family secrets aired, no bodices ripped, no aliens invaded. But it WAS fun... A memoir writ with a dash of dry humor, on a landscape of fond memories. Cindy Hartline, Library Thing Early Reviewer
For those of us who grew up in the late 40's and 50's "No Instructions Needed" is a wonderful book to remind us of what we were lucky enough to experience. For our children, this is a great way to learn how we grew up. For our grandchildren and great- grandchildren who most likely would never do the things we did, you missed out on the best time to be a child. Bob Weir, Library Thing Early Reviewer
Robert Hewitt has written a very enjoyable and enviable memoir of his boyhood growing up in the 1950s. It was a more innocent world, even with the threat of annihilation from Russia that manifested as air-raid shelters and duck and cover drills. I'm 12 years younger than Mr. Hewitt and female instead of male, but have many of the same feelings about my childhood as he did - the safety, the more separate lives of children from their parents, the freedom we had. I really enjoyed this book. It brought back my own memories of growing up in the suburbs of Los Angeles. It's well written and glows with the happiness of his childhood. The only thing that would have made it better would have been more pictures. Don't get me wrong - I love the drawings and especially as Mr. Hewitt is a graphic designer and illustrator, they are an integral part of the book. I went to the internet and found the book trailer, which had some wonderful pictures of him and his family. They made my experience complete.Karen Hengeveld, Library Thing Early Reviewer
