ISAAC AND THE EGG
BY BOBBY PALMER
269 pages
An imaginative and truly unique story that is touching, funny and tragic about feeling the pain of grief and surviving heart-break and loss. Written in the style of a modern-day fable, this is a beautifully written novel to be read with caution, because it is sad, tough but delicately crafted with warmth and hope. Now in paperback and picked by the Den to recognise Mental Health Week which falls in May.
‘Isaac and the Egg’ is the story of a broken young man who finds himself with dark thoughts on ‘Dog Suicide Bridge’ when a scream in the woods catches his attention. He is drawn into the clearing to discover an enormous white egg which is a fantastical figure who arrives glittering like a Fabergé piece. Whilst this may sound improbable, this is our introduction to a magical story about the grief stricken Isaac whose unlikely companion is able to befriend him and help guide and transform his grieving process which on the face of it seem unimaginable. As the book explains ‘Sometimes to get out of the woods, you have to go into them’.
The reader is carried along by Isaac’s story that draws out his emotions as they evolve from the depths of despair to curiosity (befriending Egg), anger that is literally expressed in the typography (aaarrrrgghhhhh) towards an overwhelming sense of lack of control, in spite of the warmth that he experiences from family, carers and doctors who we meet as his story unravels.
The novel provides an understanding of Isaac’s grief from the inside, and evokes unexpected emotions for the reader who is captivated by the story, gaining an appreciation of those who are struggling with loss. Den readers enjoyed the visual narration and appreciated the fantastical aspects that the Egg brought to Isaac's world.
A truly original piece of writing and destined to be passed on as a 'must read' book!