Bee Season: A Novel

by Myla Goldberg

Eliza Naumann, a seemingly unremarkable nine-year-old, expects never to fit into her gifted family: her autodidact father, Saul, absorbed in his study of Jewish mysticism; her brother, Aaron, the vessel of his father's spiritual ambitions; and her brilliant but distant lawyer-mom, Miriam. But when Eliza sweeps her school and district spelling bees in quick succession, Saul takes it as a sign that she is destined for greatness. In this altered reality, Saul inducts her into his hallowed study and lavishes upon her the attention previously reserved for Aaron, who in his displacement embarks upon a lone quest for spiritual fulfillment. When Miriam's secret life triggers a familial explosion, it is Eliza who must order the chaos.

Myla Goldberg's keen eye for detail brings Eliza's journey to three-dimensional life. As she rises from classroom obscurity to the blinding lights and outsized expectations of the National Bee, Eliza's small pains and large joys are finely wrought and deeply felt.

Not merely a coming-of-age story, Goldberg's first novel delicately examines the unraveling fabric of one family. The outcome of this tale is as startling and unconventional as her prose, which wields its metaphors sharply and rings with maturity. The work of a lyrical and gifted storyteller, Bee Season marks the arrival of an extraordinarily talented new writer.

• ISBN10: 0385498802
• ISBN13: 9780385498807
• Publish Date: 15 May 2001 (first published 2 May 2000)
• Publish Status: Active
• Publish Country: US
• Publisher: Bantam Doubleday Dell Publishing Group Inc
• Imprint: Bantam Doubleday Dell
• Format: Paperback (US Trade)
• Pages: 288
• Language: English
• URL: https://penguinrandomhouse.com/books/isbn/9780385498807

Reviews

[journalingirl]

Why I read it?:

Yes, let’s ask this. I was reading it because I thought Myla Goldberg was going to be my professor. Obviously I didn’t read close enough because, although Myla is a professor here, my professor is Myra Goldberg. Good job, Lily.

What I thought about it?:

This book is not one I would usually read, but it is unusually interesting. The premise is strange and you root for the main character, Eliza, to be noticed and exalted, but things don’t go exactly how you expect them to go. Also, if you are not a fan of religion, this book might not be the right choice for you (or it may prove your point against religion).