Parents' Guide to Dear Mr. Washington

In a fictional tale based on the true story of President George Washington sitting for a portrait with painter Gilbert Stuart, the president comes to the artist's house three times before he's finally captured smiling. The chaos of Stuart's many kids (in real life he had 12!), cat, and dog cause Washington to flee the first time and send the family his famous book on the rules of civility (which covers eating etiquette and how to politely pick lice and ticks off a companion, among other things). Daughter Charlotte writes to thank him, and that letter and two more form the text of the book. Her letters offer apologies for their bad behavior and notes on how she and her siblings now understand the rules (delineated with many funny pictures of Washington himself). Her third letter recounts Washington's last visit, when he finally smiled at the kids horsing around, and her father was able to complete his painting.