If I was Mrs. Rosso

from the book Ten Kids, No Pets , and I if I had used her very detailed naming system, my children would be named:

Abbie instead of Mara

Baldwin instead of Gavin

Camille instead of Sirena

Damaris instead of Madelyn

Edwina instead of Sarah

Feodor instead of Mason

Garson instead of Nolan

Harriet instead of Evelyn

(Names drawn from my trusty name book "What to name your baby" by Maxwell Nurnberg, 1962, 17th printing 1977.)  It is also safe to assume that we would not have had 41 animals parade through our home over the past 13 years. But, alas, I am not Mrs. Rosso and have had many creatures, furry, feathered and scaled, live under my roof.

We are just starting chapter 4, and this book is getting laughs from all the kids.  Being a book about a large family with a highly systematic mother makes this a good fit for our family.  I may not have as many systems as Mrs. Rosso, but her quirkiness is not so far down the road from my own quirkiness.

While this book doesn't fall into the category of great literature, it is still a cozy way to spend a rainy afternoon or two.