Under the Egg by Laura Marx Fitzgerald

I listened to this book on audio. The narrator was fabulous and did a wonderful job with the different voices.

This is a story about a 13 year old girl who lives in New York City. One of the first things that happens in the book is a scene where Theodora finds her grandfather dying in middle of her street after an accident. He gives her clues on his death bed as to what she should do after he is gone. Theo is left to take care of her disturbed mother and her home. Money is very scarce without the income of her grandfather. She is left with a mystery which turns out to be a art history mystery. Along the way she meets many characters who help or hinder her in trying to solve her mystery.

The mystery deals with a Raphael painting, art history, the Nazi's and the Holocaust, and lots of determination and tenacity. Even though this type of book isn't what I gravitate to, I really begin to enjoy the book. I especially liked learning about the art and history which was part of the mystery.

I give this book a 4 out of 4. I recommend it for middle school students. There is a lot of material and background knowledge that might be difficult for elementary readers.

Age Range: 8 - 12 years
Grade Level: 3 - 7
Lexile Measure: 0790
Paperback: 272 pages
Publisher: Puffin Books; Reprint edition (May 26, 2015)
Language: English
ISBN-10: 0142427659
ISBN-13: 978-0142427651