Meg the Egg written and illustrated by Rita Antoinette Borg (2012)
Meg is a frightened little chick who is afraid to hatch. Her siblings Peg and Keg have already hatched, but Meg refuses because she is afraid of all the sounds she hears outside her eggshell. Meg’s Mum is worried that the farmer will throw her into the rubbish heap, so she hides Meg and sits on her until she is ready to hatch. All night, while everyone else is sleeping, Meg lays awake listening to the sounds of Howls who was far away, but came closer and closer. Suddenly Howls comes right into the barn, grabbing Mother Hen, and tipping over the nest. Meg’s eggshell cracks and she sees Howls dash out of the barn with Mum. Peg and Keg are too frightened to help, so Meg has to save Mum by herself. She rolls through Moos’ muck, Oinks’ mud and Quacks’ feathers, right into Howl’s dark cave just as he is about to eat Mum. Meg convinces Howls to eat her instead. But the muck and mud and feathers that stuck to Meg’s eggshell, stick to the roof of Howl’s mouth like peanut butter and he spits her out. Meg and Mum are able to escape Howl’s cave and return to their nest in the barn where everyone settles back down to sleep… everyone that is except Meg, she can’t sleep because of the farmer’s snoring. But Mum reassures her, gives her a kiss, and Meg sleeps through the night for the first time.
Rita Antoinette Borg has created an adorable barnyard world for a frightened but brave little egg named Meg. This story is sure to show little ones that although there are many things in this world to be afraid of, there are also many reasons to be brave and overcome those fears.
I love Mum’s patience with Meg, allowing her the space and time she needed to develop. Mum’s faith that Meg would be just  fine was repaid in Meg’s determination and ability to save her Mum from Howls. What a wonderful message!
Juliana Lee 