Two Speckled Eggs

January 27, 2014
Ginger doesn’t want weird, nerdy Lyla Browning at her birthday party, but Mom insists she “invite all of the girls in her class—or none of them.” When her guests play fast and loose with her party plans (“Maya and Julia stuck all the tails for Pin the Tail on the Donkey on each other”), and the birthday cake is not a hit, Ginger realizes that Lyla may actually be kind of cool. Certainly, her present is: a handmade bird’s nest worthy of Martha Stewart, with two malted-milk eggs inside. In a nod to geek pride, illustrator Mann (Turkey Tot), in her debut as an author, doesn’t portray Lyla as a needy, sad wallflower—instead, Lyla is entirely self-assured and independent (though she’s also open to making a new friend in Ginger). Mann understands well how peers can disappoint and parties can go wrong, and her scraggly-lined drawings, filled in with washes of soft color and set against white backgrounds, give a strong sense of Ginger’s emotional vulnerability and the unanticipated possibilities offered by Lyla’s friendship. Ages 5–8. Agent: Holly McGhee, Pippin Properties.

Starred review from October 1, 2014

PreS-Gr 2-Ginger wants to have a birthday party, but her mother insists the guest list be all-inclusive, which means including weird Lyla Browning, who smells like old leaves. No party equals no presents, so Ginger relents. Not surprisingly, Lyla's gift is odd-two small candy eggs in a homemade bird's nest. Yet when Ginger's friends decide to play party games by their own rules (peeking during blindman's bluff, pinning the donkey's tail on one another) followed by mocking the birthday cake's unusual flavor-pineapple and coconut-Ginger begins to notice that Lyla really is different, in all the best ways. Solid narration is provided by Michele O. Medlin, who slides easily between snide comments from Ginger's friends to the sweetness of the two girls discovering genuine friendship. A second track with page-turning signals is included, making this a nice complement to the hardcover edition. This is a wonderful story on kindness, friendship, and the "gift" of individuality. A top pick.-Cheryl Preisendorfer, Twinsburg City Schools, OH

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