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Betty MacDonald

The Egg and I Paperback – June 24, 2008

by Betty MacDonald (Author)

529 ratings

Book 1 of 4: Betty MacDonald Memoirs Series

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“A work of real comic genius. . . . A wonderful, funny, warm, honest book, and, to use a much overused word, a classic.” –Michael Korda, author of Country Matters

When Betty MacDonald married a marine and moved to a small chicken farm on the Olympic Peninsula in Washington State, she was largely unprepared for the rigors of life in the wild. With no running water, no electricity, a house in need of constant repair, and days that ran from four in the morning to nine at night, the MacDonalds had barely a moment to put their feet up and relax. And then came the children. Yet through every trial and pitfall—through chaos and catastrophe—this indomitable family somehow, mercifully, never lost its sense of humor.

A beloved literary treasure for more than half a century, Betty MacDonald's The Egg and I is a heartwarming and uproarious account of adventure and survival on an American frontier.

Print length

288 pages
Language

English
Publication date

June 24, 2008
Dimensions

7.9 x 5.2 x 1 inches
ISBN-10

0060914289
ISBN-13

978-0060914288
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Editorial Reviews

Review

“I first read Betty MacDonald’s The Egg and I in 1946, on my return to England after the war, and it made me so homesick for the USA that I cried. I read it again around 1950, and laughed myself silly. Re-reading it now, I not only think it’s a work of real comic genius, but strangely touching as well. . . . It remains what it always was, a wonderful, funny, warm, honest book, and, to use a much over-used word, a classic.” -- Michael Korda, author of Country Matters and Ike

“For all the allegedly gloomy moments, The Egg and I is an astoundingly light-hearted book. The MacDonalds, one gathers, had both youth and gumption on their side, to say nothing of an abounding humor that bounced them over the direst crises. -- New York Times

"Anyone who has ever struggled with a farm or even with a small garden will especially enjoy this breezy autobiography. But everyone will find its hilarious reminiscences of an unconventional childhood and of unique experiences in the Northwest Pacific sprightly, diverting, and excellent entertainment. The whole book crackles with the innocent deviltry of acorns hitting the roof-tops.” -- Saturday Review of Literature

From the Back Cover

A beloved literary treasure for more than half a century, Betty MacDonald's The Egg and I is a heartwarming and uproarious account of adventure and survival on an American frontier.

Publisher : Harper Perennial; Reissue edition (June 24, 2008)
Language : English
Paperback : 288 pages
ISBN-10 : 0060914289
ISBN-13 : 978-0060914288
Item Weight : 9.6 ounces
Dimensions : 7.9 x 5.2 x 1 inches

Best Sellers Rank: #20,722 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
- #3 in Agricultural Science History
- #11 in Rural Life Humor
- #15 in Sociology of Rural Areas

Customer Reviews:
529 ratings

Customer reviews

5 star		65%
4 star		17%
3 star		10%
2 star		5%
1 star		3%

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Top reviews from the United States

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J. A. Massfeller

You are not old enough to judge this book

Reviewed in the United States on April 2, 2017

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It is quite obvious that the current readers of this book were not alive when this story took place. I am 80 years old and have two First Editions of this book. I only bought it on kiindle because I need to be able to make the print so much larger. And...I am sure I will reread it before my demise and have many laffs.
PS: I lived in the area where she was on her farm.

99 people found this helpful

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DoctorJoeE

One of my first books, and still one of my favorites.

Reviewed in the United States on January 3, 2018

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One of my earliest memories, as a boy of perhaps 4 or 5 in the mid-1950s, is spying a somewhat tattered copy of this book on my mother's bookshelf, and asking her about it. Mom was a book nerd - a trait I inherited - and Betty MacDonald's whimsical autobiography was one of her favorites. It's a shame that MacDonald is largely forgotten now, because she was enormously popular in the '50s and '60s -- although, interestingly, all of her books are still in print. "The Egg & I" was her first, and best, and it rang especially true in our household, because I grew up on a chicken ranch in southern California. It's a quick read, and I recommend it highly for anyone, but especially "city folk" (as we farmers affectionately referred to them in those days) who have no concept at all of what farm life is like, and no idea how hard farmers work. You see, chickens (and all other animals and plants that must be grown and tended) have no concept of weekends, or holidays, or vacations, or sick days; it's a 24/7/365 job. Feeling a bit under the weather today? Too bad -- get up and get to work. In 30 or so years, my father never took a single day off -- which is a big reason you don't see too many small family farms anymore. But MacDonald was a great writer in any context; "The Egg & I" was probably the first adult book I ever read, and it remains on my "top 100" list of the best nonfiction books.

36 people found this helpful

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Tamara B.

Extremely well-written with charming and delightful characters and is one audio book that I will listen to again and again.

Reviewed in the United States on December 2, 2016

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The Egg and I, written by Betty MacDonald, is entertaining, witty, heartening, and uplifting. Ms. MacDonald took difficult times in her life and made them appear fun by utilizing witty and dry humor throughout. The good, the bad, and the ugly of married life on a chicken farm in the late 1920’s is written with such flare that even today I think some people will relate to some of the situations.

The Egg and I is narrated by Heather Henderson and she performed the story so well that I thought Betty MacDonald herself was sitting in my living room telling the story. Henderson’s voice is soothing and hypnotic and took an already great book to an utterly outstanding book! The ‘voice’ of Pa Kettle was perhaps my favorite, but the ‘voices’ of all the characters were distinctive and enjoyable to listen to. Ms. Henderson is a new narrator for me, but I will definitely search out more titles narrated by her in the future - especially the other books written by Betty MacDonald.

Overall, this was a fun book to listen to and I found myself laughing out loud throughout. The Egg and I is extremely well-written with charming and delightful characters and is one audio book that I will listen to again and again.

Story – 4 stars
Performance – 5 stars
Overall – 4.5 stars

30 people found this helpful

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Babycakes

Hilarious Classic

Reviewed in the United States on June 22, 2013

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My family has read and re-read and quoted this semi-autobiographical book for decades. I believe it is the funniest book ever written. Although it takes place in the 1920's, the witty author's humor, descriptions, and outlook on life are as current as ever. At once cynical, enthusiastic, appreciative, critical, spirited, and desperate, the author's account of her life on a chicken farm in the Olympic Mountains of Washington, as a naive sheltered newlywed, is priceless. Nobody can turn a phrase like Betty McDonald. She immortalized wonderful characters like Ma and Pa Kettle and their huge family, "church-lady" neighbor Birdie Hicks, McDonald's eccentric grandmother "Gammy," and colorful handymen Peter Moses and "Good Customer." McDonald was sued after the book became a success, by the Bishop family who believed they were the model for the Kettles, and by a Native American man who believed himself the model for the Native American friend of her husband she entitled "Crowbar." Be warned - the book is screamingly politically incorrect, shamelessly disparaging country people, Native Americans, farmers, Irish, and other groups, but at the time of its original publication, this was much more common and accepted by the general public, if not the segment being stereotyped. Other classics written decades ago suffer from the same shortcoming; even the beloved Laura Ingalls Wilder books talk candidly about "Ma" hating Indians. If you can chill and love the book for what it has to offer, while accepting that it was written almost 90 years ago in a very different world, you will fall in love with it. Also, if you read between the lines, you will find that McDonald had great affection for most of the individuals she wrote about, even while criticizing others of their ethnic or socioeconomic group. All in all, the book is a joy and will give you a glimpse of a world we will never see again, when there were still large amounts of unsettled land out West, and a time when family farms could still be profitable and offer a rewarding way of life, and you will almost surely come to love Betty McDonald as a funny and most entertaining friend.

83 people found this helpful

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mariaconz

A really funny book about a woman living with her husband on a chicken farm in Washington State; neighbors described.

Reviewed in the United States on August 10, 2018

Verified Purchase

Very funny book. Mocks marriage old style on a chicken farm. Ma and Pa Kettle were born in this book. Betty MacDonald draws characters very effectively and comically, yet with some affection tinged with horror at their accommodations, which are less than ideal. She also mocks farmers nearby who are so sterile and clean that the chickens are too anemic to produce and yet afraid not to. Her descriptions of her Grammy's inedible cakes, in which she tosses everything that happens to be nearby, are hilarious. Grammy was a somewhat deranged feminist before her time. Don't miss this treat of a book. None of Betty MacDonald's other books are half as entertaining.

3 people found this helpful

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Top reviews from other countries

Annette White

The Good Life with added thousands of chickens.

Reviewed in the United Kingdom on February 18, 2017

Verified Purchase

A very funny book from the first half of the 20th century. Written partly as a protest against fashionable books praising the return to the simple life, living in the backwoods with no running water and other amenities, this tells of the author's life on a chicken farm in Washington State, and her weird neighbours, bush fires, moonshine etc. My only objection was to the author's scathing treatment of Native Americans, but this has to be understood in the context of her time of writing. It is a very enjoyable, laugh-out-loud read.

GranR

Hilarious, but also perceptive.

Reviewed in the United Kingdom on December 30, 2020

Verified Purchase

A young woman in love, living within breath-taking scenery and the gift of being able to humorously record all life’s happenings - what could go wrong?
Read this classic, and find out...

Pen Peters

Is this what Seattle wilderness is like

Reviewed in the United Kingdom on August 13, 2016

Verified Purchase

Think of A Year in Provence but set in the wilderness near Seattle; amusing and reflecting the challenges facing a young wife when her husband decides on chicken farming. Marred by the writers views on American Indians, but this was written in another world just after WW2. I read on recommendation of a friend to understand some more about Seattle before my holiday there. The book was worth reading.

silverbabel

My mums book

Reviewed in the United Kingdom on February 1, 2018

Verified Purchase

Purchased this book as remember my mother reading it (some years ago)
I an still remember her laughing out loud while reading
Thrilled to say I have been doing the same

One person found this helpful

fjfb

Sheer joy

Reviewed in the United Kingdom on October 10, 2017

Verified Purchase

One of the the most wonderfully funny memoirs ever written. I read this book forty years ago and very stupidly lent it to someone, but was thrilled to find a second-hand copy in good nick.

One person found this helpful

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