The Talking Eggs

I just loved this book by Robert D. San Souci and illustrated by Jerry Pinkney. It was completely different than what I expected.

This book is a typical fairy tale type story. It kind of reminded me of Cinderella because Blanche's mom and sister mistreated her but she was able to overcome that thanks to a little bit of magic. The story also reminded me of the story of the Samaritan woman in the Bible because Blanche shares water with an old woman at the well. The woman eventually helps Blanche because of that. I also thought of when Jesus fed 5000 people because the old woman was able to feed herself and Blanche with just a little bit.

To summarize the story, Blanche helped the old woman at the well. When her mother and sister got angry with her for taking so long to get the water, Blanche ran away into the woods and went with the old woman who made her promise not to laugh at anything she saw. Blanche kept her promise and she was richly rewarded. When her sister, Rose, tried to go to the woman's cabin, she laughed at what she saw and was punished.

This book has a fantastic moral and I really enjoyed the illustrations. They made the story. Jerry Pinkney has illustrated many books, including Little Red Hen, The Old African, The Song of the Trees, and The Nightingale.