Danny Dunn and the Homework Machine. Jay Williams and Raymond Abrashkin. 1958. 141 pages. [Source: Library]
First sentence: Danny Dunn bent over a strange device that hung from the ceiling of his bedroom, directly over his desk.
Premise/plot: Danny Dunn loves to learn, experiment, invent. He's driven by curiosity. However Danny Dunn and his friends--new and old--don't like doing homework. In this "vintage" children's book Danny programs the Professor's computer [large, bulky, not user-friendly computer] to do their homework. This requires a LOT of programming, a LOT of extra work. He first has to teach the computer and then has to teach himself and his friends how to use the computer. Danny is under the belief that he is saving time by using a computer. The adults may be getting amusement out of this realizing that extra homework is what it really is.
My thoughts: This book does not age well....for better or worse. On the one hand, I do think vintage books can give you a glimpse into the past, a time capsule if you will. In this book and in the previous Danny Dunn book I've read, it's a glimpse into how THEY in the 1950s thought the future would look like. The first book I read Danny Dunn was about space and space travel. This one was about computers. It can be amusing to see how those living in the past imagined the future playing out. On the other hand, Danny Dunn's life is so out of place--so dated. I have a hard time imagining kids today reading about this super-ancient "advanced" computer that is "oh so miraculous" and "amazing." The story, the dialogue, the characters don't really age well. As an adult I was amused yet not particularly entertained.
© 2024 Becky Laney of Becky's Book Reviews
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