Eggbert, the Slightly Cracked Egg

A cracked egg with a talent for painting goes through some painful experiences before realizing that being cracked can be something to be proud of.

Cast out of the refrigerator because of a small crack, Eggbert sets out into the world, using his talent for painting to try to blend in. Eventually he realizes that cracks are everywhere and reminds us all that our flaws are perfectly natural.

Publishers Weekly

Vibrant illustrations of life-size eggs and other household items generate excitement in this soft-boiled story. Eggbert, an egg who wears a red beret and carries a palette and brush, enjoys painterly success in the fridge until his egg compatriots discover a crack in his shell. Banished, Eggbert tentatively makes his way through the kitchen, the windowsill and the garden. There's a lag midway as Eggbert camouflages himself in various outdoor scenes, hoping to paint himself into the landscape. Momentum picks up when he accepts his imperfection and travels around the world to see ``famous cracked sights''--a canyon, an island volcano, the Liberty Bell. Ross, creator of the It Zwibble series, doesn't trouble the reader with mundane considerations, namely, that an egg would go from cracked to rotten in short order. Instead, he sustains the fantasy and establishes a point--that a great artist might in fact need to be ``slightly cracked.'' Barron, in his picture book debut, fills every page with warm, undiluted hues and realistic backgrounds. But the eggs are his least credible, most cartoonish creations, largely due to his decision to attach spindly, flesh-tone arms and legs to the solid white torsos. Mischievously touted as a ``Grade A book,'' this rates a Grade B-plus. Ages 4-8. (Mar.)

Tom Ross was inspired to write this story by his wife's real-life bowling ball, named Irma. He and his wife live in a funky adobe in New Mexico, along with their son and a friendly mutt, Mookie. copyright ? 2000 by Penguin Putnam Books for Young Readers. All rights reserved.