Now, when I Was a Kid . . .: Nostalgic Ramblings

Now, When I Was A Kid... is Dan McGuire's kid's-eye view of growing up in a small semi-rural town from the late 1930s through the early 1950s. With all the attractions of 'the big city' (Chicago) just a streetcar ride away, he and his pals enjoyed the best of two exciting worlds. It was a time when grown-ups would 'set a spell' together on someone's front porch and share neighborhood news. A time when kids could roam the neighborhood freely and parents did not panic when they were out of sight. (But they'd best be home in time for supper, if they knew what was good for them!) It was a period of recovery from the Great Depression and our country's entry into World War II, followed by the so-called 'Cold War.' Yet, because grown-ups sheltered them from most of the bad stuff, smallfry were enabled to revel in the sheer joy of just being kids. Now, When I Was A Kid... celebrates the good times when the author and his friends were too young and too innocent to suspect that it could ever be otherwise. Ah, yes, those were the days!