One of my happiest moments on stage back in college was playing my soul sister, Lucy van Pelt, in “You’re A Good Man, Charlie Brown.”

The Peanuts gang is tasked with writing “a book report on Peter Rabbit” and the characters each approach the musical assignment in their own way. Lucy, of course, concentrates on the number of words required and is very, very, very careful to hit 100 on the nose.

Funny thing, I remember back in second grade with Sister Joseph Charles (I think I’ve got that right), when she asked us to each pick out a book for our first book report. I chose – I swear! – to write a book report on Peter Rabbit.

Thing is, Sister didn’t explain what a book report should entail. For some reason, I believed the assignment was to memorize and then recite (and be prepared to transcribe) the book verbatim. (Good thing I didn’t go with War & Peace!)

Since we’re reminiscing about Beatrix Potter’s wonderful rabbit tales, let’s drop in this photo of grandson Cameron.

It always makes me think of Benjamin Bunny.

With retirement comes time to read. Books upon books await, as I challenge myself to read one per week. To keep me on track, I’ll report on them here monthly. No actual “book report” or “review,” just a few “isn’t this interesting?” notes about each.

Week 1: Memories Before & After The Sound of Music by Agathe von Trapp

I’ve read more than once over the years that the von Trapps were not thrilled with The Sound of Music. The oldest von Trapp daughter wrote this memoir to ensure that her stories were preserved.

• Captain von Trapp was a gentle, kind man. He was not the cold and gruff fellow portrayed by Christopher Plummer in the movie. He did use a boatswain whistle, though, to locate his various children in their huge manor.
• Agathe was well past “16 going on 17” when Maria entered the picture; indeed, Agathe never married (and didn’t mention dating in her memoir).
• Following World War I, the part of Austria from which Captain von Trapp hailed was granted to Italy, meaning the family members were now Italian citizens. Although they wished to regain their Austrian citizenship, it was too costly. The wealthy family had lost their savings in a recent bank failure. This may have actually saved their lives: when the Nazis invaded Austria, since Italy was soon to be part of the Axis powers, Italians were not treated harshly.
• Maria was “no Julie Andrews.” Although considered very charming, she was also quite forceful and not one to hesitate to express her concerns. When the singing family entered the U.S. for their second tour (this time, when America was involved in World War II), Maria expressed her desire to “never leave,” which caused the family to be detained at Ellis Island for the better part of a week.
• When the Germans invaded Austria, the von Trapps’ butler, Hans, told the Captain that he was a member of the Nazi party. Hans would be expected to report anything he overheard around the house to his superior. Hans also shared information with the Captain once he became aware the border would soon close. This gave the von Trapps ample time to flee.
• The family’s escape, though, was by train. There was not a dramatic crossing of the mountains, it was a short walk to the train station, which was located on the boundary of their property.

Week 2: Fahrenheit 451 by Ray Bradbury

This was the second time I read Ray Bradbury’s classic futuristic novel about book burning. It’s as horrifying as ever, and extra chilling given the popularity of virtual reality in today’s homes. James took a “Banned Books” Humanities course during his freshman year at Rose-Hulman, and this was one of the books he studied, so I downloaded a copy, too. (I must admit to feeling a bit guilty reading the electronic version and not my hard copy the second time around.)

• Bradbury, a family man with several children, found the quiet he needed to write what he first titled The Fire Man and then The Fireman in the local library. The coin-operated typewriter he used cost 10 cents per half hour of use; his masterpiece cost $9.80 in pocket change to write.
• Still unhappy with the name of his work (first, it was a short story destined for a magazine), he tried to find out the exact temperature at which book paper ignites. Back then, in the Googleless world, a call to a library would usually result in a well-researched answer. Not this time.
• Bradbury finally called the local fire chief, who quickly provided the answer: 451 degrees Fahrenheit.
• Bradbury joked later he was hopeful that reported plans to move America to the Celsius temperature scale were false, as that would ruin his title.
• Although not specified in the novel, Bradbury noted in a coda that his story – published in 1953 – was set in 1999.
• In the 1960s, the book about censorship was itself censored so that a squeaky-clean version could be read in high school literature classes. In a case of extreme irony, this version (without curse words or mention of smoking, drugs, or marital relations) was then used as the mainstream rendition for decades. Eventually, a Missouri high school class compared their modern version with the teacher’s early copy and notified the author, who saw to it that the original novel was the only version printed from 1979 onward.
• The Center for Ray Bradbury Studies is located in Indiana – on the Indianapolis campus of IUPUI – and will host a centennial celebration of his birth in 2020. (He was born in Waukegan, Illinois.)

Week 3: The Vatican Pimpernel by Brian Fleming

Many years ago, Gary and I discovered a movie called The Scarlet and the Black. It told the story of an Irish priest named Hugh O’Flaherty who was a Monsignor at The Vatican during World War II. Although the Pope maintained a voice of neutrality, he looked the other way while the good Monsignor coordinated a top-secret organization that saved the lives of thousands of Jews, Allied POWs, and resistance fighters.

• The film was released in 1983 as a made-for-TV movie.
• The movie was based on 1967 “The Scarlet Pimpernel of the Vatican” by J. P. Gallagher; the book I read was published much later, in 2012.
• The movie (included in Amazon Prime’s current offering) stars Gregory Peck as the Irishman and Captain von Trapp himself – Christopher Plummer – as the Monsignor’s nemesis, Lt. Col. Herbert Kappler, the head of the SS in Rome. They are a formidable pair.
• Cousin Beth was outraged when I told her about this bit of not-too-ancient history – the Irish Oskar Schindler. “Why don’t we know about this?!” she gasped. Her last name is O’Brien, so it’s personal.
• The “Pimpernel” referenced in both books’ titles is from The Scarlet Pimpernel, a 1905 novel about a mysterious master of disguise who rescued French noblemen from the clutches of Madame La Guillotine during the French revolution. The only clue left behind was a simple flower, a scarlet pimpernel.
• I’m guessing that this book was written with the intent not to re-tell the narrative from the earlier book (which I now want to read). There are many interesting stories about assistance to escaped POWs, probably because there was good record keeping for this part of the underground work, while help for Jews and resistance fighters was not written down. Bless that incredible soul – and all who worked with him!

Week 4: There I Go Again by William Daniels

Ever since watching the movie 1776, I’ve been a big fan of William Daniels – and John Adams.

• “Billy” was a child performer. Decades later, when working as Jerome Robbin’s assistant director for Gypsy, the similarities to his childhood story stunned him.
• He is self-deprecating about his ability to choose the correct projects; his success was often in spite of himself.
• The Broadway cast of 1776 performed at the White House; this was a bitter pill to swallow, as it was the Nixon White House and news of Watergate was brewing.
• He and his wife, actress Bonnie Bartlett, adopted two sons after losing a child, who was born a month overdue and couldn’t be saved – heartbreaking!
• William Daniels played John Adams on Broadway and film and, later, John Quincy Adams on television.
• I think there’s a bit of John Adams and Dr. Craig (from St. Elsewhere) in William Daniels, who is in his 90s.

It’s already time to wrap up July and get started on selecting “book report” subjects for August. To (mis)quote Ms. van Pelt: I am very, very, very, very, very, very happy to … be retired!

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