Book #82: The Big Over Easy: A Nursery Crime Novel

Title: The Big Over Easy; A Nursery Crime Novel


Author: Jasper Fforde


I loved Jasper Fforde's Tuesday Next series, and was excited to discover that he has started another series of madcap mysteries. In The Big Over Easy Fforde tells the story of Jack Spratt (yes, that Jack Spratt), a detective with the Nursery Crimes Division in Reading, England, who works to solve all mysteries involving characters from nursery rhymes. He and his partner, Mary Mary (yes, that Mary Mary) must solve the murder of Humpty Dumpty, whose shell was found in 156 pieces after he took a tumble from a wall.


I realize that the premise of The Big Over Easy sounds weird. It is weird. But it's also great fun. If you love literature like I love literature and don't mind a little bit of the screwball, you'll love The Big Over Easy (and if you like this, read the Thursday Next series!). About a hundred pages into the novel, you'll forget that Jack Spratt is a nursery rhyme character who can eat no fat and find yourself consumed by the story.


--originally published 12/12/06