Book Review of
The Egg and I

Lynn's Review

The Egg and I by Betty MacDonald is a memoir published in 1945.

This is Betty MacDonald’s memoir of her time in rural western Washington in the 1920s and early 1930s. 

I loved this book, but it might not be for everyone. Years after this book was written, I grew up in the far northwest corner of Oregon in a small town in the middle of nowhere, but I can relate to so much in it. 

Betty MacDonald describes the weather, the logging community, the beach, and the trees well. She makes you feel like you are in the Pacific Northwest. 

Towards the end of the book, she describes watching loggers fall trees and the precision it takes to do so perfectly. It brought back so many pictures of watching loggers I knew fall trees. Logging takes more skill and timing than people realize. 

My favorite quote from the book is, “We wore the same clothes year around and often had beach fires in January but found it too cold for them in June. We were never season-conscious. “ 

If you have lived in western Oregon or Washington, you probably understand the truth in that statement well. 

This book won’t be for everyone, but if you enjoy memoirs and have ever lived in or visited the Pacific Northwest, you will probably enjoy it. 

I will say that it was written in 1945. Parts of the book read like 1945 and use language we wouldn’t use today. However, this can be expected in a book over seventy years ago.