{"id":39523,"date":"2022-02-24T23:17:50","date_gmt":"2022-02-25T03:17:50","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/sonderbooks.com\/blog\/?p=39523"},"modified":"2022-02-24T23:17:50","modified_gmt":"2022-02-25T03:17:50","slug":"review-of-miss-bensons-beetle-by-rachel-joyce","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/sonderbooks.com\/blog\/?p=39523","title":{"rendered":"Review of Miss Benson’s Beetle, by Rachel Joyce"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"\"<\/a>Miss Benson\u2019s Beetle<\/em><\/p>\n

by Rachel Joyce
\nread by Juliet Stevenson<\/p>\n

Random House Audio, 2020. 12 hours, 4 minutes.
\nReview written June 5, 2021, from a library eaudiobook
\nStarred Review<\/p>\n

I read Miss Benson\u2019s Beetle<\/em> because of a recommendation from the \u201cSilent Book Club\u201d Facebook group of it as a Feel-Good Read. The book delivered! This is a delightful and quirky novel about following your dreams.<\/p>\n

It\u2019s 1950. Miss Benson has lived through two world wars. She\u2019s been teaching domestic science at a school for girls for twenty years. One day an incident makes her realize that the girls and the staff are laughing at her, in all her frumpiness. She throws it all off and decides to revive her childhood dream. She\u2019s going on an expedition in search of the Golden Beetle of New Caledonia. It has been seen by some, but no specimens have been gathered, so as far as science is concerned, it doesn\u2019t exist.<\/p>\n

Since she doesn\u2019t speak French, she advertises for an assistant. That doesn\u2019t go quite as planned, but eventually she and an assistant head off on an ocean liner toward New Caledonia, in search of the golden beetle.<\/p>\n

This book never goes for a likely plot. In fact, the things that happen border on ridiculous. But I\u2019ve read that readers can tolerate coincidences that make things difficult for the characters, because that feels like life. What they can\u2019t tolerate are coincidences that solve the characters problems. And yes, Miss Benson\u2019s careful planning gets mostly stymied. The difficulties she faces are outrageous and completely win the reader\u2019s sympathy.<\/p>\n

Fortunately, Miss Benson has a companion who won\u2019t let her give up on her vocation.<\/p>\n

I should say that I do bear a grudge against the author for something that happened at the end, but this book still qualifies as a Feel-Good Read. It\u2019s in a category all by itself, not a romance, not exploring issues, not helping you know more about a historical period. But it\u2019s a book that\u2019s full of a wild seize-the-day sort of joy, about an ordinary older lady throwing off convention and following her calling.<\/p>\n

Buy from Amazon.com<\/a><\/p>\n

Find this review on Sonderbooks<\/a> at: www.sonderbooks.com\/Fiction\/miss_bensons_beetle.html<\/a><\/p>\n

Disclosure: I am an Amazon Affiliate, and will earn a small percentage if you order a book on Amazon after clicking through from my site.<\/p>\n

Disclaimer: I am a professional librarian, but the views expressed are solely my own, and in no way represent the official views of my employer or of any committee or group of which I am part.<\/p>\n

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