Egg & Spoon

By: Gregory Maguire

Narrated by: Michael Page

Elena Rudina lives in the impoverished Russian countryside. Her father has been dead for years. Her brothers have been conscripted into the Tsar's army and taken as servants in the house of the local wealthy landowner. Her mother is dying, slowly, in their tiny cabin. And there is no food. But then a train arrives in the village, a train carrying untold wealth, a cornucopia of food, and a noble family destined to visit the Tsar in St. Petersburg - a family that includes Ekaterina, a girl of Elena's age. When the two girls' lives collide, an adventure is set in motion, an adventure that includes mistaken identity, a monk locked in a tower, a prince traveling incognito, and - in a starring role only Gregory Maguire could have conjured - Baba Yaga, the witch of Russian folklore, in her moving house perched on chicken legs.

©2014 Gregory Maguire, original book published by Candlewick Press (P) (P) 2014 Brilliance Audio, all rights reserved.

Critic reviews

• Audie Award, Teens, 2015

Best Tale Ever

ok. Maybe not ever, but it was fantastic. I really enjoyed this book more than his others. I also loved the weaving of just enough reality to carry the tale along. I am going to miss the characters.

Long

Really great story, but very detailed. There are small chunks that I didn't actually listen to. My mind wandered... I got distracted... whatever. I didn't need to rewind and find where I was. I could pick the story back up without missing much.

Dynamic performance of some great characters

What was your reaction to the ending? (No spoilers please!)

Everything came together in a nice, tidy way - just like a fairy tale should.

What about Michael Page’s performance did you like?

All of the characters were unique. Page portrayed the deranged Baba Yaga energetically, with hysterical results. Baba Yaga's cat, Mewster, was sly and sardonic. The performance throughout was elevated by lively and hilarious dialogue.

So much fun

Very smart sort of a fairy tale. Favorite character is the witch. You learn something about Russian folklore. Brilliant narrator

Wonderful listen!

The characters of this story are brought to vibrant life by the narration. Baba Yaga’s voice will live long in my imagination, Honey Buckets!