Freddy's Cousin Weedly Book

What makes a person brave? Freddy, Jinx and the other barn animals learn that important lesson as they try to cure Freddy's cousin Weedly of his paralyzing shyness. Jinx comes up with a remarkable plan to instill courage and confidence in the little pig, but will it succeed or, as is more likely with a plan from the mischievous Jinx, will it backfire horrendously? To complicate things, the animals are also in the midst of battle of wits against Mr. Bean's old aunt, who has taken up residence at the farm in Mr. Bean's absence in hopes of stealing back a family heirloom that she believes rightly belongs in her home. When their attempts at trickery and cunning fail, the animals resort to a surprising tactic to prevent the theft: "killing" their enemy with kindness! Will Aunt Effie learn the lesson they're trying to teach her? And will you, gentle reader, do the same?

Full of simple wisdom and clean fun, this book is certainly a classic in children's literature and one of the better installments in the Freddy series. The lessons it imparts are timeless and, perhaps, needed more than ever today. Accompanied by adorable illustrations by Kurt Wiese, the book is sure to delight readers of any age (including this thirty-something year old "girl!")

My favorite quotes highlight Brook's wonderful sense of humor:
"It is a nice jail, if I do say so," said the sheriff. "One of the most popular jails in the state. I have to make it nice, or I wouldn't have any job. You see, ma'am, we don't have any crime...and if I didn't keep a nice comfortable jail that people want to stay in, why I wouldn't get any prisoners to look after, and where'd my job be? So I got all the cells fixed up with good beds, and we got a game room and tennis courts and so on, and we set a better table than the hotel does. Folks like to stay in my jail, so now and then they break a few unimportant laws so they can..."

"...yelling is about the hardest exercise there is, and if a lot of people who weigh too much would just yell ten minutes a day, instead of playing golf or tennis or swinging Indian clubs, they would reduce very quickly. Only, of course, the neighbors probably wouldn't like it much."