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Finding Fitzgerald
They met when they were eleven. He was the con man and hero of The Great Brain book series; Carrie the mesmerized reader. Instantly they bonded. His pranks and capers carried her through her teens and early adulthood. In her early thirties, Carrie found more books about her literary hero, John D. Fitzgerald, and his family. She fell in love all over again. Only this time, she saw differences. Differences that nagged. Both sets of books had been sold as family reminiscences, yet certain characters had been changed. Which was which? What little Carrie found on the Internet didn’t satisfy her. Hearkening back to long-hand research techniques, she began a multi-decade hunt to learn the origins of John D. Fitzgerald’s family-oriented books. Along the journey to find the real John D. Fitzgerald, she made new friends. Visited towns she had never heard of. Ventured out on her own. And she found love she never expected.
112 pages, Kindle Edition
First published October 22, 2019
15 people are currently reading
17 people want to read
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Displaying 1 - 18 of 18 reviews
April 19, 2020
Wasn't quite what I expecting but enlightening nonetheless.
June 6, 2020
Charming story about a woman's research into one of her favorite authors. It was wonderful to feel connected to another "Great Brain"/Fitzgerald fan, and to learn a bit more about the history behind the series.
I did not feel shocked or disappointed by some of the sad details about the Fitzgerald family, or to learn of the liberal poetic license taken by J.D. Even though his books are fiction, I feel, like all well-written stories, they still hold and share truths. This book showed the impact a good story can have on anyone, and some of the ways the stories we enjoy as children stay with us our whole lives.
I did not feel shocked or disappointed by some of the sad details about the Fitzgerald family, or to learn of the liberal poetic license taken by J.D. Even though his books are fiction, I feel, like all well-written stories, they still hold and share truths. This book showed the impact a good story can have on anyone, and some of the ways the stories we enjoy as children stay with us our whole lives.
August 25, 2020
Learning about people is interesting
I learned much about the Fitzgerald family but learned even more about kind people willing to help others and about my sister and her wonderful family.
I learned much about the Fitzgerald family but learned even more about kind people willing to help others and about my sister and her wonderful family.
May 19, 2020
Took my just a day to read this engaging "personal history" book, written by a kindred spirit who fell in love with the Great Brain series as a child and developed a passionate interest in the real life story and family history of the John D. Fitzgerald family. Published just this past year, I stumbled upon it by accident as I was doing some poking around, myself, with similar interests and fascinations. It's a fast, fun read, and I suspect it would appeal to anyone who has enjoyed the Great Brain books.
April 5, 2023
I've read and re-read all of the Great Brain series and started looking around on family history sites to learn more about the family. That's when I happened across this book, which was interesting and shed light on the family. I'm glad to know more and grateful for family historians everywhere.
July 20, 2020
A most enjoyable story and history.
I loved the Great Brain books. I lived in Price. I had no idea the two went together until I read this book. The author tries to follow John Fitzgerald's thinking and stories. Was Price, Utah the real setting of the book? Where was his house? Were all his siblings represented in his books? It is interesting and enlightening to see what she discovers. It may hurt sometimes to find that the reality is different than the story, but it is nevertheless satisfying to understand from whence the story evolved. Thank you for a very good book.
I loved the Great Brain books. I lived in Price. I had no idea the two went together until I read this book. The author tries to follow John Fitzgerald's thinking and stories. Was Price, Utah the real setting of the book? Where was his house? Were all his siblings represented in his books? It is interesting and enlightening to see what she discovers. It may hurt sometimes to find that the reality is different than the story, but it is nevertheless satisfying to understand from whence the story evolved. Thank you for a very good book.
October 21, 2020
This book hit me, right in the feels. Finding out that the "true" adventures of John Fitzgerald in "The Great Brain" series weren't exactly true hurts. I loved those books growing up, and Carrie's memoir on her decades-long quest to find out the truth of the Fitzgerald family resonated with me. LOVED IT!
May 4, 2020
Well -written memoir that will captivate your attention even if you are not familiar with the Fitgeralds. Carrie Lynn is able to intertwine her story with that of her subject in a captivating can't-put-the-book-down way. Thoroughly enjoyed 'Finding Fitzgerald'.
April 23, 2021
Fun little read where the author digs into the background of JD Fitzgerald, the author of the Great Brain series. As someone who grew up loving the great brain and has passed that love onto her children, I really appreciated the journey alongside the author finding out more about this elusive author and how much was fact and how much was fiction
October 2, 2020
This was...valuable, but a bit neurotic. I was expecting a more fact-driven book about the real history behind the Fitzgerald family described in John D. Fitzgerald's children's series The Great Brain and his adult-aimed trilogy that starts with Papa Married a Mormon. Instead it's more of a memoir about the author and how she gets the inspiration to research the historical backdrop of the books, the courage to start a blog and then write this book, and how she weathers the blows of finding out that the stories are VERY fictionalised. For example, Papa wasn't a newspaper editor, but a saloon keeper. Horror! I mock, but I have to say that it's very admirable that she was able to overcome her considerable anxieties about the project and produce this book.
I just wish there was more history in it, even if it all had to be "this never happened". For example, where did the story of the flood that destroyed Adenville come from? Was it Price? Was there some other Utah town that this happened to? It seemed to me that big historical events like that could be traced, but she didn't do that. Nevertheless, there's a lot of valuable information in here and enough to answer questions that most readers would have after reading John D. Fitzgerald's work.
I just wish there was more history in it, even if it all had to be "this never happened". For example, where did the story of the flood that destroyed Adenville come from? Was it Price? Was there some other Utah town that this happened to? It seemed to me that big historical events like that could be traced, but she didn't do that. Nevertheless, there's a lot of valuable information in here and enough to answer questions that most readers would have after reading John D. Fitzgerald's work.
June 13, 2020
A life-long quest to get to know beloved literary childhood friends
Is depicted in this book; actually, a very abbreviated take of the quest, as the story of the detective work involved was woven around raising the AUTHORS (yes, you are) family.
I enjoyed reading this book as I too was introduced to 19th-century Adenville, Utah and the Fitzgerald family in 1976,, my 4th grade year. I was hooked and eventually read all 7 books. I remember searching for Adenville and Silverlode on a Utah map and being unsuccessful, and now I know why!
As an adult, it's jarring to discover that people, places, even time frames of much-loved friends are part of an author's imagination. For whatever reason, John Fitzgerald set his youth in the 1880-1890's ; the actual period of his preteen years was in the 1910's....and no Adenville, no Frankie Pennyworth, no Catholic Boys Academy in Salt Lake City, hell, was Dennis an actual middle name?
Discovering some of the realities versus J.D. 's imagination doesn't take away the joy I had, and still have for The Great Brain and his family and friends....they were too important for me as a kid to dismiss. Thank you, author for sharing your quest to Find Fitzgerald :)
Is depicted in this book; actually, a very abbreviated take of the quest, as the story of the detective work involved was woven around raising the AUTHORS (yes, you are) family.
I enjoyed reading this book as I too was introduced to 19th-century Adenville, Utah and the Fitzgerald family in 1976,, my 4th grade year. I was hooked and eventually read all 7 books. I remember searching for Adenville and Silverlode on a Utah map and being unsuccessful, and now I know why!
As an adult, it's jarring to discover that people, places, even time frames of much-loved friends are part of an author's imagination. For whatever reason, John Fitzgerald set his youth in the 1880-1890's ; the actual period of his preteen years was in the 1910's....and no Adenville, no Frankie Pennyworth, no Catholic Boys Academy in Salt Lake City, hell, was Dennis an actual middle name?
Discovering some of the realities versus J.D. 's imagination doesn't take away the joy I had, and still have for The Great Brain and his family and friends....they were too important for me as a kid to dismiss. Thank you, author for sharing your quest to Find Fitzgerald :)
October 30, 2019
As a kid I read the Great Brain series by John D Fitzgerald. I long wondered what happened to the Great Brain and the rest of the family. Carrie Lynn wondered too, but she, unlike myself, had the drive to find the answers.
Find the answers she did and this book provides them as well as the wonderful story of her journey of discovery. We learn about the Fitzgerald family, their relatives, and the author and her relatives as well. A touching, well written book that was hard to put down.
Find the answers she did and this book provides them as well as the wonderful story of her journey of discovery. We learn about the Fitzgerald family, their relatives, and the author and her relatives as well. A touching, well written book that was hard to put down.
December 29, 2019
This book wasn’t what I expected but I still really enjoyed it. If you are a fan of the Great Brain books and are obsessed with them like me this is a book for you. The author went on a quest to find the real story of the Great brain and this is her take on what happened. Awesome book! Thanks for writing it.
December 30, 2019
For anyone who has enjoyed the Great Brain series as a kid, or a bigger kid, and wondered where the stories came from, this book answers many of those questions. The author's journey to learn the background is depicted with excellent prose that takes you on the journey along with her. I really enjoyed the writing as well as revisiting elements of a series I once enjoyed as a kid. Great book!
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November 23, 2022[Following is an official OnlineBookClub.org review of "Finding Fitzgerald" by Carrie Lynn.]
Finding Fitzgerald by Carrie Lynn is a bibliographical book containing the author's research work in putting together the puzzling pieces of the Fitzgeralds. At age eleven, Carrie's mom had brought home a book series, The Great Brain by John Fitzgerald. And from that time, Carrie's love for the Fitzgeralds was etched deeply in her heart. Many years later, she would read John's first early biographical memoir, Papa Married a Mormon, published in 1955. This inspires her search for the Fitzgeralds, who had gone somewhat extinct. In searching out the history of the Fitzgeralds, Carrie unravels shocking truths, some of which were hurting revelations. How would she handle the doubt that all she had thought real could be fictional? Why would John Fitzgerald lie about his story? Find out in this exciting book.
For me, the most positive aspects of this book were the love and togetherness shared among Carrie's family. Her parents had begun this foundational love when she and her brother were little. The Great Brain series was gotten by their mom and read to them during a camping trip in 1976. Her family was "bibliofanatics." So, everyone got a fair share of attention during family time. Carrie carried on with this tradition when she became a mother. Her children and her husband were trustworthy sources of family support. Although they had different characters, their diversity was unique. Clarissa, her first child, was a straight A student committed to "tae kwon do." Elaine, the second, was a competitive equestrian rider, and Mitch, the third, was autistic. Altogether, Carrie's family was a lovely one.
Finding Fitzgerald, to me, was a lot more than researching about the Fitzgeralds. However, this is the primary focus of the book. It was more like an endorsement of John's work. In 1955, John was “an unknown author from a tiny Utah town, who published a best-selling book, Papa Married a Mormon." It was evident in her writing that Carrie Lynn was very interested in expressly communicating the values of the novel. “What were the stories behind his stories—not the ones he wrote, but the ones that inspired his book?" This was one of the many questions that inspired Carrie to carry out this research work. Following these many questions were years of dedication, commitment, disappointment, challenges, joy, and hard work. Carrie Lynn's perseverance was inspiring. I liked this about the book.
Given Carrie's work, I can tell that John's books greatly impacted societal values. This was revealed in what she wrote, “John D. Fitzgerald incorporated many values (family, love, community, support, honor between friends, humor) into a most enjoyable series of books that the youth of our nation should be exposed to in this challenging era of growing up.” This is another positive aspect of the book. I do not find any part of this book negative.
Hence, I rate Finding Fitzgerald four out of four stars. There were very few errors in the book, which is a clear expression that the book was well edited. I recommend this book to readers who enjoy mystery novels or thrillers.
Finding Fitzgerald by Carrie Lynn is a bibliographical book containing the author's research work in putting together the puzzling pieces of the Fitzgeralds. At age eleven, Carrie's mom had brought home a book series, The Great Brain by John Fitzgerald. And from that time, Carrie's love for the Fitzgeralds was etched deeply in her heart. Many years later, she would read John's first early biographical memoir, Papa Married a Mormon, published in 1955. This inspires her search for the Fitzgeralds, who had gone somewhat extinct. In searching out the history of the Fitzgeralds, Carrie unravels shocking truths, some of which were hurting revelations. How would she handle the doubt that all she had thought real could be fictional? Why would John Fitzgerald lie about his story? Find out in this exciting book.
For me, the most positive aspects of this book were the love and togetherness shared among Carrie's family. Her parents had begun this foundational love when she and her brother were little. The Great Brain series was gotten by their mom and read to them during a camping trip in 1976. Her family was "bibliofanatics." So, everyone got a fair share of attention during family time. Carrie carried on with this tradition when she became a mother. Her children and her husband were trustworthy sources of family support. Although they had different characters, their diversity was unique. Clarissa, her first child, was a straight A student committed to "tae kwon do." Elaine, the second, was a competitive equestrian rider, and Mitch, the third, was autistic. Altogether, Carrie's family was a lovely one.
Finding Fitzgerald, to me, was a lot more than researching about the Fitzgeralds. However, this is the primary focus of the book. It was more like an endorsement of John's work. In 1955, John was “an unknown author from a tiny Utah town, who published a best-selling book, Papa Married a Mormon." It was evident in her writing that Carrie Lynn was very interested in expressly communicating the values of the novel. “What were the stories behind his stories—not the ones he wrote, but the ones that inspired his book?" This was one of the many questions that inspired Carrie to carry out this research work. Following these many questions were years of dedication, commitment, disappointment, challenges, joy, and hard work. Carrie Lynn's perseverance was inspiring. I liked this about the book.
Given Carrie's work, I can tell that John's books greatly impacted societal values. This was revealed in what she wrote, “John D. Fitzgerald incorporated many values (family, love, community, support, honor between friends, humor) into a most enjoyable series of books that the youth of our nation should be exposed to in this challenging era of growing up.” This is another positive aspect of the book. I do not find any part of this book negative.
Hence, I rate Finding Fitzgerald four out of four stars. There were very few errors in the book, which is a clear expression that the book was well edited. I recommend this book to readers who enjoy mystery novels or thrillers.
December 27, 2021
This is a first-person account of how Carrie Lynn went looking for the Great Brain. I am pretty sure I wouldn't have finished if I wasn't such a huge fan of *The Great Brain* series, and totally sympathetic to her plight.
It was certainly quite revealing at a couple of levels. One was of Ms. Lynn's perserverance to get to the bottom of things, come to terms with them, and then get the book togehter. This a pretty polished outcome for what was effectively a passion project. She has also championed The Great Brain appreciation communitity on Facebook and elsewhere, and kudos to her for that.
The second is that dust-to-dust is really that. John Fitzgerald has touched so, so many lives through his works, and one or two generations out some of the principal details of his life are a puzzle that will remain unsolved.
At any rate, you probably know if you are the audience for this book, and, if so, you will probably enjoy plowing through it. If not, you should pick up a copy of *The Great Brain* and read it to your kid.
It was certainly quite revealing at a couple of levels. One was of Ms. Lynn's perserverance to get to the bottom of things, come to terms with them, and then get the book togehter. This a pretty polished outcome for what was effectively a passion project. She has also championed The Great Brain appreciation communitity on Facebook and elsewhere, and kudos to her for that.
The second is that dust-to-dust is really that. John Fitzgerald has touched so, so many lives through his works, and one or two generations out some of the principal details of his life are a puzzle that will remain unsolved.
At any rate, you probably know if you are the audience for this book, and, if so, you will probably enjoy plowing through it. If not, you should pick up a copy of *The Great Brain* and read it to your kid.
August 4, 2024
The author does what any fan of The Great Brain has probably wanted to do. She traced the true lives of John and Thomas Fitzgerald. But be warned, you might not be happy with the truth. Part of me is glad I have answers, part of me isn't.
March 20, 2024
Interesting to learn about some background for the books and Carrie’s journey and perseverance along the way.
Displaying 1 - 18 of 18 reviews