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On the HahaFiction shelf
Walking Across Egypt
At 78, Mattie Rigsbee believes keeping a stray dog would be too much work. She calls the dogcatcher, whose teenage nephew Wesley is in trouble for stealing a car. Before long, Mattie’s attempts to help the boy make the dog look like the simpler responsibility.
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What makes it funny?
Mattie has a firm account of what she is too old and too busy to do. Her homemade food and determination to look after Wesley keep drawing her into precisely those obligations.
The comedy at work
Mattie puts her Christian principles into practice with a practical determination that alarms her neighbors and grown children. Their doubts about her judgment help turn acts of charity into a comedy of errors.
Try this if…
The appeal lies in a gently comic Southern community and an older woman who takes her principles seriously enough to inconvenience everyone around her.
Good to know
Widowhood, juvenile detention and car theft figure in the story. Christian faith guides Mattie’s choices, and the title comes from her favorite hymn.
A few distinguishing details
- An older woman takes responsibility for a teenage delinquent
- A stray dog sets off a much larger household disruption
More funny contemporary & literary
Sources & further reading
- Kirkus review
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