The Sweetest Egg of All by Helen Milroy, a descendant of the Palyku people of the Pilbara region of Western Australia and published by Magabala Books is the third book in the Tales from the Bush Mob series. The Bush Mob is a group of birds and animals who live in outback Australia. They enjoy adventurous days, friendship and helping each other. Living together also means there are problems to solve and the Bush Mob are an innovative group when it comes to hatching plans to come up with creative solutions. They also have to navigate tricky situations and skilfully deal with different personalities for the common good and a peaceful community. This story contains a beautiful and timeless lesson about being kind. It highlights that members of a community, have a responsibility to work together, show compassion to each other and cooperate in a collegial manner. Being selfishly driven causes friction, division and is harmful. The Bush Mob show the beauty and power in helping each other, which often involves courage, resilience and wisdom, and the positive results this has for making a strong and harmonious community.

In this heart-warming story, Gecko and Thorny Devil, great admirers of Bungarra, want to gift Bungarra a special present for his upcoming birthday. They seek the help of the Bush Mob for inspiration for a gift. A response comes from King George Brown (KGB) which sounds like a wonderful idea, however unbeknownst to Gecko and Thorny Devil, KGB is acting selfishly and not at all trying to help Gecko and Thorny Devil in their quest for the perfect present for Bungarra. Instead he deceives them.

KGB has long held a desire to steal one of Willy Wagtails eggs as he had heard they were the “sweetest eggs of all”, an enticing thought for KGB who happens to have a very sweet tooth. However, he misinterpreted what he heard as the comment was about the appearance of the egg being small and cute, therefore sweet. The comment didn’t relate to taste. Given KGB is unable to access an egg from a nest way up high in a tree, he now sees an opportunity and seizes it by convincing Gecko and Thorny Devil to steal one of these rumoured deliciously sweet eggs. What unfolds is a captivating, creative and clever plan involving a number of animals, using their strengths, to work together to ensure the egg can be safely removed from the nest in the tree.

This is no mean feat as KGB dupes Gecko and Thorny Devil by instructing them to retrieve the nest with the egg and place it in a cave where he assures them the egg will remain safe. However, KGB secretly meets with King Toad. These two feared animals unite forces to create what they believe is a fail-safe plan to house the egg until KGB can safely collect it for himself. They do not count on the ingenuity of the Bush Mob and how they work together courageously and wisely to return Willy Wagtail’s egg.

Thankfully, Bush Dingo, head of the Bush Mob Council puts his detective skills to work and methodically and diplomatically uses clues to set about determining the whereabouts of the egg. The egg is rescued, lessons are learned and compassion is shown.

The story is visually driven as bold and lively illustrations illuminate the double page spreads. At the beginning of the book each of the animals in the story are illustrated and labelled. The story is divided into three sections which makes it perfect for pausing and engaging in rich discussions about the storyline, the animals (their characteristics, habitat, actions) the environment as well children and adults making predictions. The sections are: Bungarra’s Birthday Surprise, The Plan and the Plot and The Big Rescue. An Epilogue is included exploring the lesson in this story.

Buy The Sweetest Egg of All from Riley Callie Resources here.

By purchasing through the Reading Opens Doors blog, you are supporting Debbie Hoger, a Dunghutti woman and founder of Riley Callie Resources as well as Reading Opens Doors, as I receive a small commission for any transactions made. Thank you so much for supporting our businesses.

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *