Neil Simon's hilarious portrait of a family, as seen through the eyes of a teenager (an aspiring writer, whose adolescent insights about his family, the Great Depression and growing up are alternately hysterical and touching). It's Brooklyn in 1937 and the boy is consumed with baseball & girls. Living with six family members doesn't afford him much privacy, but gives him plenty of ammunition for his writing. In excerpts from his journal, he introduces his hardworking mother and father, his ambitious brother, his cousins and his aunt. The resulting coming-of-age story is an affectionate, entertaining lesson in overcoming hard times with grace, warmth and humor.  One of America's favorite comedies.