The Egg Man by Mary Rosenblum

Zipakna travels with genetically altered chickens that produce medicinal eggs that treat diabetes and a variety of other health problems. He comes from a wealthy Mexico to help the impoverished southwest of the United States, with the hope of finding his missing former wife.

Returning to the Paloma settlement Zipakna finds new members who grow illegal “pharma” sunflowers. What exactly the crop is intended to do, or why it is not sanctioned, is never explained. He meets a boy who looks surprisingly like his former wife.

The social entanglements are well done and it’s successful in evoking a sense of place. Neither of the important women in Zipakna’s life appears in the story, suggesting that this is part of a longer work.

“The Egg Man” by Mary Rosenblum first appeared in Asimov’s, February 2008
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