One day Theo is doing some chores and putting this egg of honor under a picture of an egg, it’s a tradition, you will see when you read the book, when she accidentally spills some rubbing alcohol on her grandfather’s painting. That till won’t go far in New York City, where they live. The bills are stacking up and all Theo has to operate from is a till of $500 that her grandfather had saved up before he suddenly died. You see, her mother is fixated on a math theorem and can’t be bothered to help. This sends her life into a bit of a tailspin, as her grandfather has provided for her family’s financials and Theo’s mother isn’t exactly a help as far as paying household bills. Under The Egg pretty much opens with Theodora Tenpenny’s grandpa Jack dying. I love that every character in the book plays a pretty darn important part and that we also get to learn something about history, even though the book is totally fictional. It’s got interesting characters that are surprising in that they don’t stick rigidly in the bad guy/good guy role. Under The Egg by debut author Laura Marx Fitzgerald is a short middle grade book that’s both a mystery and an ode to art history as well as kind of a love letter to New York City. I love it when books have a big mystery and smart young heroines who are total survivors living hardscrabble lives.
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