Under the Egg

by Laura Marx Fitzgerald
August 21, 2014

First of all, I would have loved this book as a kid. Two friends, New York City, adventures all around the city.  It's reminiscent, to me, of Kallie's Corner by Alice Low.

I wanted something to read and a friend said, "Oh, I heard this was good." So, I picked it up because it looked promising. After two pages I was hooked.

Theodora lives with her mother in a rundown townhouse in Greenwich Village. The townhouse has been in their family since the day it was built. That's why they live in poverty in the midst of such a rich neighborhood.  They have done alright for themselves and have lived comfortable lives up until the day Jack dies. Jack is Theodora's grandfather. With Jack gone, Theodora must maintain the household, take care of the backyard chickens, tend the vegetable garden and take care of her mentally ill mother.  Just when she thinks she can't take it anymore two things happen.
First, she finally figures out what Jack meant by his dying words, "Under the egg..." and she meets Bodhi.

Under a  painting of an egg is another, older painting of a woman and a child.  Could it be a Raphael painting?  If so, how did Jack come to own such a thing?

Bodhi is Theodora's neighbor. She's the daughter of two famous actors and is as much as an orphan as Theodora. Even when her parents are there, they aren't there.

This is the story of Theodora and Bodhi's quest to solve the mystery of the painting under the egg.

I really loved this book.