book data
633 ratings,
3.69
average rating, 128 reviews
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published
June 23rd 1997
(first published 1987)
by Ballantine Books
binding
Paperback, 240 pages
characters
isbn
0345419073
(isbn13: 9780345419071)
description
She has as much business keeping a stray dog as she would walking across Egypt–which not so incidentally is the title of her favorite hymn. She’s Matt...more
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other reviews (showing 1-20 of 779)
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5 stars (139)
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4 stars (244)
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3 stars (183)
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2 stars (49)
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1 star (17)
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avg 3.69
editions: all | this edition
editions: all | this edition
Read in September, 2008
Walking Across Egypt restores your faith in mankind. A sixteen-year old boy lives at a juvenile detention home and through his uncle, the local dogcatcher, he meets a senior citizen he comes to call Grandma. He escapes the detention home and comes to live with Grandma and they develop a grandma and grandson relationship. Her son and daughter objects to the friendship but grandma ignores them and she and the boy builds upon their friendship from her teaching him about things most children take fo...more
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Read in February, 2008
I really liked this book, but I didn't love it. The main character is Mattie, a woman who thinks she's "slowing down", and despite her prejudices and some totally irrational habits, she sincerely believes that she can affect her community for the better, one meal at a time. She's very human, and her naivite as well as her hypocrisy is enlightening.
Reading this reminded me of a lot of people I know, a lot of faults which I have, and the humor and good grace that gets me th...more
Reading this reminded me of a lot of people I know, a lot of faults which I have, and the humor and good grace that gets me th...more
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This is a story of an older woman, getting on in years but still able to live independantly. One day she has an unfortunate incident with one of her favorite chairs which leaves her stuck in a rather awkward position. While waiting for a repair man to come to her rescue, she recalls a sermon given recently at her church. It was concerning "the least of these" type of people. This is a heart warming tale about standing up for what you belive and caring for others. I really enjoyed ...more
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Re-read Egypt again yesterday as I looked through favorite books having to do with food and eating; Edgerton's descriptions of the men in Mattie's life in thrall to her good, old-fashioned, simple Southern cooking - apple pie, pound cake, tomatoes and other vegetables from her garden, and so on - are so convincing as to make it possible to believe that Wesley is actually gonna behave himself, stop smoking, even to go to church, after he moves in.
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Read in October, 2008
recommends it for:
Aunt Barb
A fun vacation read, similar to the clever style of Alexander McCall Smith. The main character is a 70 something women, and the story is related as seen through her eyes. With a mix of the naiivity of a Sunday school little girl, and wisdom that comes with having lived over 70 years.
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bookshelves:
bookcrossing,
places-i-have-been,
set-in-my-stomping-grounds,
set-in-the-south,
sometimes-fluff-is-good,
southern-author
Read in January, 2003
Clyde Edgerton can be quite good at capturing personalities of a small North Carolina Town. Mattie and those who touch her life, are all so well drawn and so regular and ordinary, that it is refreshing to read. You won't find a single wasp-waisted, sharpe tongued publisher's assistant, or any clever and resourceful intellectuals who can craft a solution to a problem using only the items in their pockets. No computer wizards cracking code or finding the answer to life's eternal questions.
...more
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Read in April, 2009
I've read about this book for years. It's on so many recommended reading lists, especially for book groups, but for some reason, I'd never picked it up.
I added it to the schedule of one of my library book discussion groups this year as one of the members ONLY wants to read things that are light and funny, nothing too depressing. It makes it challenging to come up with titles that are suitable for discussion.
I listened to this on audio and loved it. I found myself LOL fr...more
I added it to the schedule of one of my library book discussion groups this year as one of the members ONLY wants to read things that are light and funny, nothing too depressing. It makes it challenging to come up with titles that are suitable for discussion.
I listened to this on audio and loved it. I found myself LOL fr...more
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Read in January, 2001
This book contains my favorite description ever. I won't give it away, but the scene has to do with dirty dishes, a soap opera, and chair seats being recovered.
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Read in February, 2005
I loved this story! I fell in love the with main character, Mattie. A grandmotherly, take care of everybody type of woman.
From back cover:
"She has as much business keeping a stray dog as she would walking across Egypt-which not so incidentally is the title of her favourite hymn. She's Mattie Rigsbee, an independent, strong-minded senior citizen who, at seventy-eight, might be slowing down just a bit. When teenage delinquent Wesley Benfield drops in on her life, he is...more
From back cover:
"She has as much business keeping a stray dog as she would walking across Egypt-which not so incidentally is the title of her favourite hymn. She's Mattie Rigsbee, an independent, strong-minded senior citizen who, at seventy-eight, might be slowing down just a bit. When teenage delinquent Wesley Benfield drops in on her life, he is...more
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Read in September, 2008
Walking Across Egypt was this month's selection for our little neighborhood book group. We've tackled Mister Pip, The Reluctant Fundamentalist, Balzac and the Little Chinese Seamstress, The Story of Lucy Gault among others. So it was time for a break -- hence this book. And what a book it is.
Mattie is the main character here, and she lives in rural North Carolina by herself, although her two children come every so often to visit. At 78, she does fine for herself, although...more
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Read in September, 2008
So far I like it...much better than Fred Chappell's I Am One of You Forever, which is also southern fiction. This humor is more subtle, and less slapsticky (is that a word?). We'll see by the end...
What a funny little book. It was definitely worth the read, and the author painted a vivid & hilarious portrait of a traditional old southern woman trying to live a proper life. What was exception about this book, as compared to other comedic books of southern life (Fred Chappell's boo...more
What a funny little book. It was definitely worth the read, and the author painted a vivid & hilarious portrait of a traditional old southern woman trying to live a proper life. What was exception about this book, as compared to other comedic books of southern life (Fred Chappell's boo...more
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Read in August, 2008
recommended to Jennifer by:
Sheppard Memorial Libraryrecommends it for: anyone who likes rich character development and is interested in culture in the South
I read this because it is our library's 'one book, one community' choice for this year. The author is local, and it is set in eastern North Carolina. It is sweet and funny, and I like the development of the characters. They're multi-faceted and interesting. I feel like it helped me understand the culture and viewpoints of the religious people I am surrounded by here. I find myself very curious as to the author's religious beliefs and his purpose in writing this book. He shows how important...more
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Favorite Quotes
She walked into the kitchen, turned on the light and saw through the window that the eastern sky as dark red. It was her favorite time of the day. She stepped out onto the back step. It was cool. She also liked it when it was cold and she could stand there taking in the cold morning while the sky was red, and time stopped stood still, and rested for a minute. People thought that time never stood still, except in Joshua when the sun stood still; but she knew that for a ...more
She walked into the kitchen, turned on the light and saw through the window that the eastern sky as dark red. It was her favorite time of the day. She stepped out onto the back step. It was cool. She also liked it when it was cold and she could stand there taking in the cold morning while the sky was red, and time stopped stood still, and rested for a minute. People thought that time never stood still, except in Joshua when the sun stood still; but she knew that for a ...more
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Read in November, 2008
This is a very "Suh-thern" novel, with well-done southern dialect and great southern-based humor! I was VERY humored by the main character, Mattie, who is 78 year old woman who longs for grandchildren. Her son and daughter are nearly hopeless.
One day, in a HILARIOUS scenario, she meets the neighborhood dogcatcher and learns of his nephew, Wesley. Wesley is troubled and in a juvinille facility. Wesley needs someone, even though he doesn't know it.
The hear...more
One day, in a HILARIOUS scenario, she meets the neighborhood dogcatcher and learns of his nephew, Wesley. Wesley is troubled and in a juvinille facility. Wesley needs someone, even though he doesn't know it.
The hear...more
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Read in May, 2009
This was a fun story about a 78 year old grandma that meets up with a teenage cast away that she feels is "one of the least of these." In a long story that begins with her getting stuck in one of her chairs for 6 hours, Wesley slowly makes his way into her heart.
It was uplifting and funny but the language was a little bad (teenager with a potty mouth) and it was a little hard to get though.
It was uplifting and funny but the language was a little bad (teenager with a potty mouth) and it was a little hard to get though.
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Read in January, 2007
I adored the characters in this book, all of them. Mattie, the independent old lady who lives her Christian life by her own lights rather than those of the local church, Wesley the young delinquent who thinks he's taking advantage of her sometimes, not realizing how generous she really is, the snoopy neighbors, the son and daughter -- it was just warm-hearted and funny and delightful.
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Read in March, 2009
Mediocre book about an elderly woman and how she views life around her. You see her sweetness as she reaches out to others around her in need, focusing on a young boy who is in jail. How I would invision an elderly woman might think and act.
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Read in March, 2009
In spite of the criticisms of other people, Mattie lived by doing for "the least of these my brethren." It was so sweet when she took the pie and the juice to Wesley in the reform school. Of course he thought she was his grandma!
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Read in June, 2009
rec. from Denise and Cheryl...it better be good! (kidding)
Finished. Sweet southern story. Its good to read, for a change of pace, a tale that leans to the inate Goodness in people. My folks were of the generation that poked holes in their cathead biscuits for honey or molasses, so I had a glint of nostalgia reading this.
Finished. Sweet southern story. Its good to read, for a change of pace, a tale that leans to the inate Goodness in people. My folks were of the generation that poked holes in their cathead biscuits for honey or molasses, so I had a glint of nostalgia reading this.
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Read in June, 2009
There are some very funny parts, but the ending was just an opening for another whole book. Do women as old as Mattie was, still do all that? I'm wondering if I'll be that active. I'm not sure I'm that active right now.
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