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Powdered Eggs
A young writer-to-be embarks on a comic coming-of-age journey through the crushing mediocrity of work, the vagaries of fate, and the mysteries of sex
A confused and conflicted but not altogether angry young man shares his observations, disappointments, rants, and sexual desires in a revealing series of letters to an unnamed friend. Our hero wants to be a writer, but is stuck doing mind-numbing work for an unscrupulous encyclopedia publisher. He muddles through two engagements, one to a bright-eyed Catholic virgin, the other to a woman pregnant with another man's child. And the Great American Novel he is writing--about a man named Austin who is becoming invisible--may be a bit too much for the reading public to handle. But as long as he's got his friends (like Jose, who is determined to bed and wed his cousin Rita the nun), his health (no thanks to the medical establishment that killed his father), and his libido, everything should turn out okay.
Winner of the William Faulkner Foundation Award for notable first novel--more outrageous than Catcher in the Rye and more scandalous than Portnoy's Complaint--Charles Simmons's Powdered Eggs is an unforgettable view of young American life through an amusingly jaundiced eye.
A confused and conflicted but not altogether angry young man shares his observations, disappointments, rants, and sexual desires in a revealing series of letters to an unnamed friend. Our hero wants to be a writer, but is stuck doing mind-numbing work for an unscrupulous encyclopedia publisher. He muddles through two engagements, one to a bright-eyed Catholic virgin, the other to a woman pregnant with another man's child. And the Great American Novel he is writing--about a man named Austin who is becoming invisible--may be a bit too much for the reading public to handle. But as long as he's got his friends (like Jose, who is determined to bed and wed his cousin Rita the nun), his health (no thanks to the medical establishment that killed his father), and his libido, everything should turn out okay.
Winner of the William Faulkner Foundation Award for notable first novel--more outrageous than Catcher in the Rye and more scandalous than Portnoy's Complaint--Charles Simmons's Powdered Eggs is an unforgettable view of young American life through an amusingly jaundiced eye.
- GenresFiction
224 pages, Paperback
First published January 1, 1964
6 people are currently reading
54 people want to read
About the author
Charles Simmons
48 books9 followersCharles Simmons (August 17, 1924 – June 1, 2017) was an American editor and novelist.
Librarian Note: There is more than one author in the Goodreads database with this name. See:
Charles Simmons, American clergyman and author
Charles Simmons
Charles Simmons, Autobiographer
Librarian Note: There is more than one author in the Goodreads database with this name. See:
Charles Simmons, American clergyman and author
Charles Simmons
Charles Simmons, Autobiographer
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Displaying 1 - 9 of 9 reviews
May 18, 2024
I don't really know what to make of this. Sort of a stream of consciousness Catcher in the Rye type deal that didn't really make any sense. Sometimes, you wonder about people in the 1960's.
September 6, 2016
I hope that all of my recent five star reviews to not dissuade you to the authenticity of my ratings. I was even hesitant if I should rate this book five stars because of the above mentioned issue, but then I figured that rating this lower because of previous high ratings was ridiculous. So another five stars it is. I just hope that you don't think I'm an overly agreeable reader. Because I'm not. I'm a harsh bitter bookworm for the most part :P
Anyways sorry for the ramblings, on with the review.
I loved this book. Although it is hard to describe what it's about. The story follows a young man's daily life, although there are many stories inside the story. I didn't mind this fact, but some people may find it a little annoying. For example the main character is a writer and he randomly will include long passages of his novel in the book. However I found his novel quite amusing so I did not mind.
I found the narrative to be relatable, humorous and witty. Even though in my opinion the plot was about nothing in particular I had such a fun time reading this and it was so hard to put down.
The only criticism is that the main character is supposed to be in his early twenties but I feel like he sounds much older than that. I would not classify this book as young adult because in my opinion it was very mature in an juvenile way if that makes sense.
Overall I thought this was a quick witted, funny read and I would recommend. The title is random as hell though.
Note: I received this book for free in exchange for an honest review.
Anyways sorry for the ramblings, on with the review.
I loved this book. Although it is hard to describe what it's about. The story follows a young man's daily life, although there are many stories inside the story. I didn't mind this fact, but some people may find it a little annoying. For example the main character is a writer and he randomly will include long passages of his novel in the book. However I found his novel quite amusing so I did not mind.
I found the narrative to be relatable, humorous and witty. Even though in my opinion the plot was about nothing in particular I had such a fun time reading this and it was so hard to put down.
The only criticism is that the main character is supposed to be in his early twenties but I feel like he sounds much older than that. I would not classify this book as young adult because in my opinion it was very mature in an juvenile way if that makes sense.
Overall I thought this was a quick witted, funny read and I would recommend. The title is random as hell though.
Note: I received this book for free in exchange for an honest review.
August 8, 2024
One of the reviews of this horrible book said it 'outstrips Candy, Fanny Hill, and the Chatterley Woman.' I've read one of those and that is a really low bar to step over.
For some reason, this book won a Faulkner Award. There must have been a dearth of novels that year. The book is (IMHO) truly awful. It's supposed to a 'wild and wonderful swinging novel', but it barely held my attention. Thank goodness it was only 144 pages.
Not recommended for anyone.
Find it. Ignore it. Don't bother to read it.
For some reason, this book won a Faulkner Award. There must have been a dearth of novels that year. The book is (IMHO) truly awful. It's supposed to a 'wild and wonderful swinging novel', but it barely held my attention. Thank goodness it was only 144 pages.
Not recommended for anyone.
Find it. Ignore it. Don't bother to read it.
February 5, 2023
I really enjoyed this read. Mostly because a witty internal dialogue gets me every single time!
This is a story about a lot of things. It follows a young man who is a writer. At times it can be hard to follow along with the internal dialogue switching back & forth from his novel to his story. However it did not detract me from continuing through
This is a story about a lot of things. It follows a young man who is a writer. At times it can be hard to follow along with the internal dialogue switching back & forth from his novel to his story. However it did not detract me from continuing through
May 11, 2019
tough to read, really did not enjoy
April 11, 2015
It took me a long time to get through Powdered Eggs by Charles Simmons and I’m way too lazy to try to recap what happens, so forgive me for copying Netgalley’s synopsis before I start commenting on the book.
"A young writer-to-be embarks on a comic coming-of-age journey through the crushing mediocrity of work, the vagaries of fate, and the mysteries of sex
A confused and conflicted but not altogether angry young man shares his observations, disappointments, rants, and sexual desires in a revealing series of letters to an unnamed friend. Our hero wants to be a writer, but is stuck doing mind-numbing work for an unscrupulous encyclopedia publisher. He muddles through two engagements, one to a bright-eyed Catholic virgin, the other to a woman pregnant with another man’s child. And the Great American Novel he is writing—about a man named Austin who is becoming invisible—may be a bit too much for the reading public to handle. But as long as he’s got his friends (like Jose, who is determined to bed and wed his cousin Rita the nun), his health (no thanks to the medical establishment that killed his father), and his libido, everything should turn out okay."
What I didn’t know when I picked up the book or even until now that I finished it, is that this is a re-release and Powdered Eggs was first published in 1964. Another thing I didn’t get until I read the above synopsis again, was that this is a series of letters intertwined with this story the narrator is writing.
It is kind of confusing and would I have cared about this book, maybe I would go back to the beginning to see if it was my mistake for not figuring this out or recognising it but the truth is, I really did not enjoy this story. Not one bit.
First of all, every chapter, or in this case letter, is one big blob of words, there are no paragraphs and it is really annoying to read. Even more so because the author doesn’t use quotation marks to indicate when someone talks or who is talking. I guess it is meant to look witty but to me it is just pretentious and confusing.
The fact that every chapter is supposed to be a letter explains why the chapters all seem so disconnected from each other and part of me can even understand that but in the way this ebook was constructed, it just doesn’t work for me.
The story in itself, well, it is abundantly clear this was written by a man. The last chapter features what is supposed to be a witty self-critical last letter about how the narrator offended all sorts of different groups of people but in one thing he is wrong. The most punished social group by this book are women, not Italians, Germans, Jews or Catholics but women. The way he talks about them?! Just no. There is a scene where the narrator starts talking to his chamber maids vagina (a woman he had just met, might I add) as if it is a separate entity and it doesn’t matter what the woman attached thinks as long as he still go the vajaja to play with. And then he takes the maid then and there because who cares what she thinks, clearly she must want this weird American tourist who’s room she just cleaned. I’ve seldom read fanfiction that was as bad as this when it comes to sudden sexual encounters and I’ve read a lot of mediocre fanfiction. Consent, what is consent, am I right?! It’s like the author even wants a pat on the back for this.
Clearly I am not the intended audience for this novel and a quick look on Amazon shows me that it mostly got raving reviews which makes me feel dumb and like I missed some vital point the author was trying to make but no. This is meant to be shocking, okay, but there is nothing clever about comparing Rome to a vagina or having your friend lust after his nun-cousin. Maybe, if I were a pretentious man, I could pump my fist in the air and say: Finally a book after my own heart but I am neither of those and instead I want to HULKSMASH everything and bring down the patriarchy all at the same time!
There a lucid moments for this story where I though, hey this isn’t so bad and maybe everything that came before was a misunderstanding but then comes another sentence and the little hope I had is buried under bad innuendoes, sexism and misogyny.
I haven’t read Cather in the Rye yet with which this is apparently often compared and the John Irving I read, I did enjoy although it has been years since I read The Hotel New Hampshire and I am clearly a different person now but no, this book brings me to Nopeville.
"A young writer-to-be embarks on a comic coming-of-age journey through the crushing mediocrity of work, the vagaries of fate, and the mysteries of sex
A confused and conflicted but not altogether angry young man shares his observations, disappointments, rants, and sexual desires in a revealing series of letters to an unnamed friend. Our hero wants to be a writer, but is stuck doing mind-numbing work for an unscrupulous encyclopedia publisher. He muddles through two engagements, one to a bright-eyed Catholic virgin, the other to a woman pregnant with another man’s child. And the Great American Novel he is writing—about a man named Austin who is becoming invisible—may be a bit too much for the reading public to handle. But as long as he’s got his friends (like Jose, who is determined to bed and wed his cousin Rita the nun), his health (no thanks to the medical establishment that killed his father), and his libido, everything should turn out okay."
What I didn’t know when I picked up the book or even until now that I finished it, is that this is a re-release and Powdered Eggs was first published in 1964. Another thing I didn’t get until I read the above synopsis again, was that this is a series of letters intertwined with this story the narrator is writing.
It is kind of confusing and would I have cared about this book, maybe I would go back to the beginning to see if it was my mistake for not figuring this out or recognising it but the truth is, I really did not enjoy this story. Not one bit.
First of all, every chapter, or in this case letter, is one big blob of words, there are no paragraphs and it is really annoying to read. Even more so because the author doesn’t use quotation marks to indicate when someone talks or who is talking. I guess it is meant to look witty but to me it is just pretentious and confusing.
The fact that every chapter is supposed to be a letter explains why the chapters all seem so disconnected from each other and part of me can even understand that but in the way this ebook was constructed, it just doesn’t work for me.
The story in itself, well, it is abundantly clear this was written by a man. The last chapter features what is supposed to be a witty self-critical last letter about how the narrator offended all sorts of different groups of people but in one thing he is wrong. The most punished social group by this book are women, not Italians, Germans, Jews or Catholics but women. The way he talks about them?! Just no. There is a scene where the narrator starts talking to his chamber maids vagina (a woman he had just met, might I add) as if it is a separate entity and it doesn’t matter what the woman attached thinks as long as he still go the vajaja to play with. And then he takes the maid then and there because who cares what she thinks, clearly she must want this weird American tourist who’s room she just cleaned. I’ve seldom read fanfiction that was as bad as this when it comes to sudden sexual encounters and I’ve read a lot of mediocre fanfiction. Consent, what is consent, am I right?! It’s like the author even wants a pat on the back for this.
Clearly I am not the intended audience for this novel and a quick look on Amazon shows me that it mostly got raving reviews which makes me feel dumb and like I missed some vital point the author was trying to make but no. This is meant to be shocking, okay, but there is nothing clever about comparing Rome to a vagina or having your friend lust after his nun-cousin. Maybe, if I were a pretentious man, I could pump my fist in the air and say: Finally a book after my own heart but I am neither of those and instead I want to HULKSMASH everything and bring down the patriarchy all at the same time!
There a lucid moments for this story where I though, hey this isn’t so bad and maybe everything that came before was a misunderstanding but then comes another sentence and the little hope I had is buried under bad innuendoes, sexism and misogyny.
I haven’t read Cather in the Rye yet with which this is apparently often compared and the John Irving I read, I did enjoy although it has been years since I read The Hotel New Hampshire and I am clearly a different person now but no, this book brings me to Nopeville.
April 17, 2014
So I didn't hate this book, but I didn't love it either. It's just middle of the road for me. I assume my fairly neutral feelings come from the fact that this book is a bit dated. I wasn't alive in the 60s. That's not to say that I cannot read books from/about eras not known to me personally -- just this one didn't make me feel connected to it.
The story is told via one sided letters (the pen pal sometimes responds and sometimes does not, but we never see those letters). A young man, fresh from college, is attempting to figure out his place in the world. To truly be a writer or to just settle for a job. To pick this girl or that one. To keep this friend or not to.
Probably the best part of the book comes at the very end, where the letters are summed up as the writer of them decides that perhaps they can be a part of his novel. Even though it was the best part of the book, I still found it to be a little forced. It basically was a few passages explaining that such letters in novel form would be criticized as boring (it was).
I think this book is just for a different generation. Things that were not taboo subjects then are now and ones that were shocking then are not now. To have a story like that work for everyone we need to really connect to the characters, I didn't.
I do think that this is a 5 star book for someone, just not me.
* Disclaimer: I received this book at no cost in order to review it. I offered no guarantee of a positive review, though I only request books I think I'll like because why read a book you think you’ll hate?
The story is told via one sided letters (the pen pal sometimes responds and sometimes does not, but we never see those letters). A young man, fresh from college, is attempting to figure out his place in the world. To truly be a writer or to just settle for a job. To pick this girl or that one. To keep this friend or not to.
Probably the best part of the book comes at the very end, where the letters are summed up as the writer of them decides that perhaps they can be a part of his novel. Even though it was the best part of the book, I still found it to be a little forced. It basically was a few passages explaining that such letters in novel form would be criticized as boring (it was).
I think this book is just for a different generation. Things that were not taboo subjects then are now and ones that were shocking then are not now. To have a story like that work for everyone we need to really connect to the characters, I didn't.
I do think that this is a 5 star book for someone, just not me.
* Disclaimer: I received this book at no cost in order to review it. I offered no guarantee of a positive review, though I only request books I think I'll like because why read a book you think you’ll hate?
February 17, 2022
I had just read "The Hair Of Harold Roux" by Thomas Williams before I picked up "Powdered Eggs". Similar to Harold Roux - this is a tale of a writer where the world between the writer's life and the stories he is working on - jump back and forth. "Powdered Eggs" is by far more quirky and does not necessarily follow a linear path. The main character is a young writer trying to find a place to stick - a job, a relationship, a story to work on- anything. A very well-crafted and funny book.
May 29, 2008
This is a book that greatly influenced my life. Very, very funny, risque and true. Holden Caulfield after college.
Displaying 1 - 9 of 9 reviews