Eggs, by Jerry Spinelli

Eggs is the rare gem for tweens that could appeal to girls and boys alike. Nine-year-old David has just relocated to a Pittsburg suburb after the death of his mother. He expresses his sadness and anger by lashing out at his grandmother and refusing to make new friends … until he meets thirteen-year-old Primrose, who lives in a van outside her psychic mother’s house in a shady part of town. While theirs is an odd relationship, it works. Both feel like outsiders and shun the people closest to them. At one point, David points out the irony in their friendship: Primrose tries to escape the mother who she says is crazy, while David wants nothing more than to have his mother back. Although they maintain a tough exterior- David constantly shouts at Primrose “I don’t like you!” and Primrose calls David names like “infant turd”- they find in the other the love and support they need.

Spinelli’s prose is great for readers who like it brief and to the point: “A drape parted. Light. Her silhouette leaving. Dark again. Night in a box. David alone. Scared.” I consider this the antithesis of J.K. Rowling’s rambling, 50 words per sentence style!

My only qualm with Eggs is the sometimes unrealistic circumstances. Yes, these characters are raw and real, but what grandmother would allow a nine-year-old free reign of the city, regardless of the circumstances? How many times would your grandson stay out until 2 am before you noticed? However, because this is such a powerful story and David’s progression from boyhood requires him to explore on his own, the reader lets it pass. Overall, Spinelli’s Eggs is a funny but moving story full of quirky, loveable characters.

Spinelli, J. (2007). Eggs. New York, NY: Little, Brown and Company. ISBN 0316166464.