"Be an angel, Jannie, and get me that magazine I left on the dining room table" or "Be an angel and help me polish my fingernails." "Did I even want to be an angel if all they did was wait on people? I already had enough of that in my young life," Jan states. As Jan describes her early life experiences, she shows that regardless of what was happening in the world around her, she was still a child. She still had fun, and she still wondered about boys and what was right and wrong. Her creative way of describing her childhood years in a small town "back in the day" will draw you into this book and make it a true pleasure to read. Jan stated, "We, who back in the 1920's and 30's, had to learn to roll with the punches. Men had to crank a car to start it. Ladies had to keep their food cool in boxes with ice in them. Laundry was done by hand in tubs with washboards and plungers. There was also a certain "etiquette" that we had to abide by when nature called with those dreaded outhouses." Some of you grew up at approximately the same time as Jan. You have vivid memories of experiences very similar to those she shares in this book. You may be able to identify with the questions and feelings that she describes in response to the life events of her younger years. Others of you may have heard your parents tell stories similar to the ones you will read in this book. Jan states, "Yes, life in the time of the Great Depression gave children its share of hardships, but it also provided us with many opportunities to grow in character. We are thankful for the life lessons we learned." Others of you are the grandchildren or great-grandchildren of Jan's generation. You surely have dozens of questions about what it was like to live as Jan did, without TVs, refrigerators, computers, washers and dryers, microwaves, and all the other gadgets you take for granted today. Come and take a journey into her life and see, first-hand what life was all about. In fact, jot down your questions about anything that puzzles you. Ask your grandparents or great-grandparents to explain it, and, as Jan states, "don't let them get away with fudging on their answers."