I feel I have been very lucky so far this year, as I have read some absolutely stunning books. And many of those have been thanks to recommendations. ‘Isaac and the Egg’ is exactly one of those books.
It will be no surprise to any of you that I did not read the blurb before picking this book up – I had just seen that so many bookstagrammers I admire had enjoyed it, so I needed to give it a go. Isaac is a man suffering in grief: his wife has died and he is struggling to come to terms with it (as any man would) – in fact, he is probably in the darkest place he could be when we meet him at the start of the book. However, he meets Egg (a bit like Elliot meets ET, in ‘ET’), and caring for Egg gives Isaac some purpose. Slowly, Issac tackles some of those things he has avoided, and seems to reconnect with those who care for him – but then Egg forces him to deal with the most important thing he has been avoiding.
I absolutely can not spoil this for anyone who may be considering reading it – you have to pick it up and immerse yourself in it, because I think, for different people, this book will mean different things. For me, it was a story about tackling grief, and understanding that there is no one-size-fits-all solution for dealing with this.
Do not let this make you think that this is a book that is depressing to read – because it’s a story of hope, and of Isaac rediscovering love for himself and for those around him. I can’t promise you will not have your heartstrings well and truly pulled on by the final chapters, and that maybe the odd tear won’t be shed, if only for the happy ending.
For this to be Bobby Palmer’s debut novel, he has set himself a very high bar. I would expect this to come from the pen of a very experienced writer, well into their career. I absolutely can’t wait to see what Bobby Palmer does next, as he has definitely secured me as a fan.
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