You short-change yourself too much

 

Three generations of the Gogarty family of Dun Laoghaire, Ireland go through all manner of upheavals in Good Eggs.  Millie Gogarty, the matriarch of the family, has been widowed for a long time.  Boredom and some unknown drive causes her to indulge in the occasional minor bout of shoplifting.  Unfortunately, this has not gone unnoticed in the small family-owned shop that is her usual target, so when her latest excursion results in a call to the police, her only child, Kevin, is called to collect her from the police station.  Kevin has recently turned 50 and experienced another personal setback:  he's lost his longtime job at a magazine that focused on celebrity gossip.  Now he has to compete with younger, tech-savvy applicants for positions covering celebrities he's never heard of.  His wife Grace has a high-paying job that requires her to work long hours away from the family.   Three of Kevin's four children are still at home, but teenaged twins Nuala and Aideen seem to always be at each other's throats.  Sixteen year old Aideen, in particular, is moody and uncooperative.  Kevin is left to try to keep his mother out of jail, find a new job, and keep Aideen from getting into trouble herself.

Kevin tells his mother that the police have agreed not to charge her with any crimes, as long as she agrees to have a home health aide check up on her a few hours each day.  Millie is appalled, but soon begins to appreciate the cheerful, take-charge young American woman Sylvia, who is hired to look after her (and report any misdeed to Kevin).  Is Sylvia too good to be true?

Aideen, much to her horror, is soon packed off to a boarding school across town in order to separate her from her sister and also give her a chance to get her grades up during her last few years of school.  While Aideen didn't really have friends in her old school, physical proximity soon means she has a new friend in the rebellious and angry Brigid.  If Aideen couldn't stay out of trouble on her own, how much hope is there once she has a willing accomplice?

Aideen and Millie have a bond based on their shared feelings of anger at being threated with being sent away.  Kevin continually suggests to Millie that she might be better off in a nursing home where she can be looked after, but of course she wants no part of that.  Aideen is sent to the boarding school against her will, so she can fully understand her grandmother's concerns. 

As more and more problems build for the Gogarty family, can they all navigate their current problems and the new ones that are constantly cropping up?  The book was very entertaining and I really enjoyed seeing what was going to happen next.  Millie, especially, is a character and her constant escapades would make for an interesting series!

Disclaimer:  I received a copy of Good Eggs from NetGalley in exchange for this review