Cheaper by the Dozen (1948)

by Frank B. Gilbreth, Jr., Ernestine Gilbreth Carey, Frank B. Gilbreth

Other authors: See the other authors section.

Series: Gilbreth Family (1)

Members	Reviews	Popularity	Average rating	Mentions
4,922	83	2,428	(4.01)	135
The classic American memoir of twelve kids, two parents, and a world of laughter and love Translated into more than fifty languages and adapted into two classic motion pictures, Cheaper by the Dozen is the unforgettable story of the Gilbreth clan as told by two of its members. In this endearing, amusing memoir, siblings Frank Jr. and Ernestine capture the hilarity and heart of growing up in an oversized family. Mother and Dad are world-renowned efficiency experts, helping factories fine-tune their assembly lines for maximum output at minimum cost. At home, the Gilbreths themselves have cranked out twelve kids, and Dad is out to prove that efficiency principles can apply to family as well as the workplace. The heartwarming and comic stories of the jumbo-sized Gilbreth clan have delighted generations of readers, and will keep you and yours laughing for years. This ebook features an illustrated biography including rare photos from the authors' estates.… (more)

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40
Life with Father / Life with Mother by Clarence Day (atimco)
atimco: Funny family stories with a larger-than-life father, fun mother, and redheaded kids.
20
Making Time: Lillian Moller Gilbreth -- A Life Beyond "Cheaper by the Dozen" by Jane Lancaster (infiniteletters)
20
Time Out for Happiness by Frank B. Gilbreth Jr. (kathleen.morrow)
kathleen.morrow: Also by Frank Gilbreth - a slightly more serious look at the Gilbreth family - particularly at Frank Sr. and Lillie before they started their family and at Lillie's successful struggles to support the family after Frank's death.
10
Eight Is Enough by Tom Braden (infiniteletters)

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▾Member reviews

English (80) Danish (1) Italian (1) French (1) All languages (83)

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Showing 1-5 of 80 (next | show all)

Based on a true story, this humorous account details the life of the Gilbreth family with twelve children, focusing on their adventures and the efficiency experiments conducted by their father, a motion study expert. The family’s loving and chaotic dynamics offer lessons in teamwork and time management. It showed me how families can function as teams, each member contributing uniquely to collective goals. (

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darrelljmurphy | Dec 12, 2024 |

O man, I still think about this just about every time I button a shirt. I believe it influenced my decision to avoid having a large family.

Y'know, it's interesting growing up in a town of 1100, with a mother who didn't buy many books because, after all, we did have a free library. Sure, I guess the adult section was well-enough stocked to keep her busy in the time she could spare from the three of us. But there are *so many* children's books I missed out on. And so many I read over and over again. And also some adult books I found to read and reread, like this, and [a:Robert Benchley|21049|Robert Benchley|https://d2arxad8u2l0g7.cloudfront.net/authors/1276734925p2/21049.jpg], [a:Emily Kimbrough|147203|Emily Kimbrough|https://s.gr-assets.com/assets/nophoto/user/u_50x66-632230dc9882b4352d753eedf9396530.png], and [a:James Thurber|16839|James Thurber|https://d2arxad8u2l0g7.cloudfront.net/authors/1183238729p2/16839.jpg], etc. I wonder if this will hold up now that I'm approaching empty-nest.... (

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Cheryl_in_CC_NV | Oct 18, 2024 |

Yup, still as delightful as it was when I was a kid. Somehow I missed, back then, that Mother, too, was an engineer. And the bonus of re-reading it now is that I can go online and find out that the Time-Motion analyses were real, and even see some of the films and promotional pictures. My family values efficiency & economy to a very high degree, but we're pikers compared to Gilbreth. I would have loved to learn Morse code the way these kids did! Really too bad Dad died so young, but many men did back then. Anyway, yes, if you haven't treated yourself to this yet, it's about time you did. Oh, and I have no interest in a movie version. (

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Cheryl_in_CC_NV | Oct 18, 2024 |

April's children's classic. (

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olegalCA | Aug 25, 2024 |

AR: 6.0

ASSG.Library | Nov 21, 2023 |

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▾Other authors

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Author name	Role	Type of author	Work?	Status
Gilbreth, Frank B., Jr.	—	primary author	all editions	confirmed
Carey, Ernestine Gilbreth	—	main author	all editions	confirmed
Gilbreth, Frank B.	—	main author	all editions	confirmed
Bengtström, Doris	Illustrator	secondary author	some editions	confirmed
Ivey, Dana	Narrator	secondary author	some editions	confirmed
McKay, Donald	Illustrator	secondary author	some editions	confirmed
Rademacher, Susanna	Translator	secondary author	some editions	confirmed
Wulff, Jürgen	Cover designer	secondary author	some editions	confirmed

▾Series and work relationships

Belongs to Series

Gilbreth Family (1)

Belongs to Publisher Series

Baluard (5)

Perennial Classics

rororo (1721)

The Vanguard Library (13)

Is contained in

Cheaper by the Dozen | Belles on Their Toes by Frank B. Gilbreth Jr.

Has the adaptation

Cheaper by the Dozen [2003 film] by Shawn Levy

Cheaper by the Dozen 2 [2005 film] by Adam Shankman

Cheaper by the Dozen [1950 film] by Walter Lang

Is abridged in

The Best of Both Worlds: An Anthology of Stories for All Ages by Georgess McHargue

Has as a study

Shelf Discovery: The Teen Classics We Never Stopped Reading by Lizzie Skurnick

Has as a student's study guide

Cheaper by the Dozen by Frank Bunker Gilbreth, Sr. l Summary & Study Guide by BookRags

▾Awards and Honors

Distinctions

New York Times bestseller (Nonfiction – 1949)

Notable Lists

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▾Common Knowledge

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Canonical title

Cheaper by the Dozen

Original title

Alternative titles

Original publication date

1948-12

1949-01 (Book-of-the-Month Club Ed.)

1951-12 (Bantam Ed.)

1959-10 (New Bantam Ed.)

1963-04 (Bantam Pathfinder Ed.)

(show all 8 items)

People/Characters

Important places

Montclair, New Jersey, USA

Oakland, California, USA

Nantucket, Massachusetts, USA

Providence, Rhode Island, USA

Buttonwoods, Rhode Island, USA

Important events

Related movies

Cheaper by the Dozen (1950 | IMDb)

Cheaper by the Dozen (2003 | IMDb)

Cheaper by the Dozen 2 (2005 | IMDb)

Epigraph

Dedication

To Dad, who only reared twelve children and To Mother, who reared twelve only children.

First words

Dad was a tall man, with a large head, jowls, and a Herbert Hoover collar.

Quotations

Last words

(Click to show. Warning: May contain spoilers.)

Disambiguation notice

Publisher's editors

Blurbers

Original language

English

Canonical DDC/MDS

Canonical LCC

▾References

References to this work on external resources.

Wikipedia in English (1)

Cheaper by the Dozen

▾Book descriptions

The classic American memoir of twelve kids, two parents, and a world of laughter and love Translated into more than fifty languages and adapted into two classic motion pictures, Cheaper by the Dozen is the unforgettable story of the Gilbreth clan as told by two of its members. In this endearing, amusing memoir, siblings Frank Jr. and Ernestine capture the hilarity and heart of growing up in an oversized family. Mother and Dad are world-renowned efficiency experts, helping factories fine-tune their assembly lines for maximum output at minimum cost. At home, the Gilbreths themselves have cranked out twelve kids, and Dad is out to prove that efficiency principles can apply to family as well as the workplace. The heartwarming and comic stories of the jumbo-sized Gilbreth clan have delighted generations of readers, and will keep you and yours laughing for years. This ebook features an illustrated biography including rare photos from the authors' estates.

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