Summaries and Customer Reviews are supplied by Amazon.com

Average Customer Rating:

another masterpiece from the novelist for children

Customer Rating:

David, nine years old, has just lost his mother to an accident at work when he meets Primrose, thirteen years old, pretending to be dead with an egg in her mouth at the Easter Egg Hunt. So begins their antagonistic, moody, but deep friendship between an angry little kid trying to understand his loss and an angry teenage girl trying to deal with her weird and distant mother. Full of Spinelli's characteristic weird, true, and human characters and those little quirky things that make up childhood and friendship and life, Eggs is another masterful, powerful novel for the child in everyone. And he truly understands childhood, not idealizes it, but understands what it is to be a little thing in a hard world. When you read this, make sure you have some Kleenex handy. Spinelli is effortlessly powerful and moving, being lyrical and never sappy. Grade: A+

Eggs from an Educator

Customer Rating:

Eggs was my first Jerry Spinelli read, which is rather surprising considering two key points: (1) I am an avid reader and (2) I teach elementary school. Overall, I loved the characterization and detail Spinelli exercised throughout the storyline. I found pleasure and comfort in becoming familiar with the two main characters, David (age 7) and Primrose (age 13). However, at times these characters were difficult to be fond of considering their negative outlooks on life. As an educator, I read children's literature with the intent to use it in my classroom someday for a specific purpose. During most of this book I felt as if I was grasping for a reason to continue the read. With much afterthought I have compiled a list of ways Eggs would engage my students and thus reasons for teachers to use this book in their classrooms (see below). Even though I enjoyed Eggs, I am leery to recommend it for the general population. It is deep with symbolism and situations that would be hard for some students to understand and relate, such as death, psychics, children living alone, isolation of family members, children sneaking out at night, running away from home, etc. Amazon.com does not suggest the targeted grade level for this book, probably due specifically to its content. From my best estimate, the book reads at around a 3rd grade level, but deals with concepts more appropriate for 4th or 5th grade. I would not hesitate to use this book in the middle school grades, as it seems much more appropriate for their psychological development stages. Eggs does not have a "happily ever after" type conclusion, which would definitely appeal to some students. Being new to Jerry Spinelli works, Eggs has ignited my curiosity about his other books. Regretfully, I hope they are more age appropriate for my P-3 classrooms. Reasons to Read Eggs * The main characters ages make this book interesting for 2nd and 3rd grade students. Plus, the main characters have major attitude problems that would be funny to most elementary schoolers. * The plot deals with life circumstances that might relate to students, specifically the death of a parent. Plus, the closure that comes after sharing your concerns with others who care. * The main characters have exciting midnight adventures, where they often get into sticky situations. * The younger male character befriends the older female character, yet their friendship is often on "love/hate" terms. * The main characters work for what they want together. They are diligent about making money. Sadly, they are also diligent about spending and not saving. * A bullying aspect is present and could be capitalized on by teachers. * A focus on coping with life's struggles and acceptance of the way things change over time. * An appreciation for those who are different.

Eggs

Customer Rating:

David is a 9 year old boy who lost his mother in an accident. He moves to Perkiomen to live with his grandmother, only seeing his father on the weekend. Primrose is a 13 year old who never knew her father and whose mother is eccentric to say the least. Jerry Spinelli brings these two characters together forming an unlikely, but entertaining pair. Their love/hate relationship will hit home with anyone who reads it. While Eggs gets off to a slow start, it is well worth reading it through to the end. From a teaching standpoint there are great issues that can be discussed and a lot of use of imagery and symbolism.

Jerry Spinelli is BACK!

Customer Rating:

I love Jerry Spinelli... I love Maniac Magee, Stargirl, Loser, Crash,Knots in My Yo-Yo String, but not so much Fourth Grade Rats and Wringer. JS knows what kids today are interested in reading about... real issues.... things they have experienced and characters like they are or know. I wasn't sure if JS could successfully recreate another intense, thought-provoking, touching and real storyline like he did with Stargirl.. but he has! Eggs is a story of two children both angry at the world due to different circumstances in their lives, but somehow find each other and reclaim their ability to love and accept love. Spinelli has created such realistic characters, I almost had a hard time returning to the "real world" after completing this book! Eggs is a story that you will reflect on the relationships in one's own life and sometimes our reluctance to address hard issues with ones we love.

Spinelli does it again!

Customer Rating:

Eggs, the latest book from Jerry Spinelli, is a wonderful read for anyone that has lost a parent, has a parent that they cannot relate to or is trying to cope with life in general! Nine year old David's mother dies in a freak accident, so he must live with his grandmother while his father works out of town. David meets Primrose, an interesting, older, and different girl, at an Easter egg hunt that his grandmother forces him to attend. She is pretends she is dead and scares him. Primrose lives with her mother that works as a psychic and only knows her father by a photograph she has of him. From here there friendship takes off. They spend time together fixing up the old VW van that Primrose lives in, starting a bait business, and eventually walking to the city on an adventure. Two unlikely characters that have much more in common than they realize as they form a friendship makes this book an "eggs"cellent choice! Boys or girls will enjoy this quirky book. The Amazon website recommends the book for ages 9-12, but I found it to be a great read even for an adult. I will be using the book with my students for Spinelli literature circles. I highly recommend this book!