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asurges's review against another edition
3.0
Good writing (as Elizabeth Graver always does), but I kept thinking that I would like it more if I were also a mother with a daughter verging on adolescence/loss of innocence/etc.
I liked "Unraveling" a lot more.
I liked "Unraveling" a lot more.
heartofoak1's review against another edition
3.0
started off promisingly, a widow decides to move out of New York City in order to make a better life for her young daughter. the neighborhood they're living in is changing (crime, drugs) and so is 11 year old Eva who has begun shoplifting and acting out. Miriam, the mom, thinks a move to upstate NY is the way to change the course of their lives. life, as we know, isn't as simple as that.
it's summer so school is out, Miriam doesn't have the money to send Eva to camp, there are no other children nearby so Eva is isolated with only an elderly sitter for company. one day while riding her bike Eva discovers a simple roadside "stand" offering honey for sale. there's no one around, the honor system cash box is there, the jarred honey looks so pretty...
we meet Burl the beekeeper who befriends lonely Eva. Burl teaches Eva about the bees, and how he's trying to save his colony from the diseases that are killing it...
ok, so i liked the story up until this point when it took on a darker turn.
everyone in the story was "damaged" or hurt or needed help in some way and honestly i found the theme depressing. poor Eva was obsessed with the possibility that she'd lose her mother, Miriam obsesses over the death of her husband who was a suicide brought on by his bi-polar disease and also if Eva would be genetically at risk of bi-polar disease, Burl was hung up on his "lost love" and having been inadequate in his father's eyes for not becoming an attorney and opting for a quite life on the farm...
then.... there's an accident which brings the three of them together. meh.
i did find the bee keeping information interesting. the hard look at mental health issues was unsettling, to put it mildly, but well rendered, i thought.
it's summer so school is out, Miriam doesn't have the money to send Eva to camp, there are no other children nearby so Eva is isolated with only an elderly sitter for company. one day while riding her bike Eva discovers a simple roadside "stand" offering honey for sale. there's no one around, the honor system cash box is there, the jarred honey looks so pretty...
we meet Burl the beekeeper who befriends lonely Eva. Burl teaches Eva about the bees, and how he's trying to save his colony from the diseases that are killing it...
ok, so i liked the story up until this point when it took on a darker turn.
everyone in the story was "damaged" or hurt or needed help in some way and honestly i found the theme depressing. poor Eva was obsessed with the possibility that she'd lose her mother, Miriam obsesses over the death of her husband who was a suicide brought on by his bi-polar disease and also if Eva would be genetically at risk of bi-polar disease, Burl was hung up on his "lost love" and having been inadequate in his father's eyes for not becoming an attorney and opting for a quite life on the farm...
then.... there's an accident which brings the three of them together. meh.
i did find the bee keeping information interesting. the hard look at mental health issues was unsettling, to put it mildly, but well rendered, i thought.
the_sassy_bookworm's review against another edition
2.0
I thought I'd enjoy this one more then I did! I was laboring under the impression it was going to be similar to "The Secret Life of Bees" and it just wasn't. The characters were pretty one dimensional and the ending was abrupt to say the least!
lizandlibrary's review against another edition
3.0
This book was okay. The writing was good, lots of descriptive phrases; however, I was slightly disappointed with the ending. I felt like there could have been more to the ending. I guess the author decided to leave it open to the reader's imagination to tie up the ends and finish each character's story.
thesassybookworm's review against another edition
2.0
I thought I'd enjoy this one more then I did! I was laboring under the impression it was going to be similar to "The Secret Life of Bees" and it just wasn't. The characters were pretty one dimensional and the ending was abrupt to say the least!
cindywindy_blogs's review against another edition
3.0
I felt that this book was just alright, I would like to give this book a 2 1/2. Nothing really awful to saw about it, yet nothing really great to say about it either. When the plot of a novel is slow (like this one), I expect greater character development and emotions. Instead I just felt passive towards all the characters.
I did not understand Burl's role in this book. Was he supposed to bring them (mother-daughter) closer together, help Eva with her stealing, teach her life lessons or what? I kept expecting Burl and Miriam to get together or at least become close friends, but that never happens. And the end, it just ends--no real conclusions, not even a direction.
I think I would have liked this book more if it focused more on the relationship between Eva and Miriam and Eva and Burl. Instead there are a lot of flashbacks with Burl and his parents and his love Alice. And then Miriam's flashbacks all involve Francis. While I thought these flashbacks, especially with Francis, were interesting, I felt the novel spent too much time in the past, and too little in the present and future. For example, the "tensions" between Eva and Miriam are only really talked about in one scene, when Miriam is on her way to work and they get into a huge argument.
I did not understand Burl's role in this book. Was he supposed to bring them (mother-daughter) closer together, help Eva with her stealing, teach her life lessons or what? I kept expecting Burl and Miriam to get together or at least become close friends, but that never happens. And the end, it just ends--no real conclusions, not even a direction.
I think I would have liked this book more if it focused more on the relationship between Eva and Miriam and Eva and Burl. Instead there are a lot of flashbacks with Burl and his parents and his love Alice. And then Miriam's flashbacks all involve Francis. While I thought these flashbacks, especially with Francis, were interesting, I felt the novel spent too much time in the past, and too little in the present and future. For example, the "tensions" between Eva and Miriam are only really talked about in one scene, when Miriam is on her way to work and they get into a huge argument.
mouthy_books's review against another edition
challenging
dark
emotional
informative
reflective
sad
tense
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
5.0
This book is empowering.
There's this deep emotional sympathy when reading.
With bipolar being the main subject of the book, it gives you a glimpses into a different state of mind.
There's a lot to unpack in this novel. Definitely a must read.
There's this deep emotional sympathy when reading.
With bipolar being the main subject of the book, it gives you a glimpses into a different state of mind.
There's a lot to unpack in this novel. Definitely a must read.
katemiller41's review against another edition
2.0
I feel like this book had so much potential and this author had a really great story to tell...but, she didn't quite tell it.
I reached the end of the book and had to sit back and think about the story (not a bad thing). the problem with this is that there was no resolution. Sure, the main character had a problem and then she overcame it, but the reader was not part of this transformation.
I feel like the author had all of the strings to this plot tightly in her hands, but she never found the right way to weave together the mother/daughter, bee/society, or sexuality/familial relations. As a reader I was left wanting more, but feeling like the door had been closed on my curious face.
Overall disappointing, sad face.
I reached the end of the book and had to sit back and think about the story (not a bad thing). the problem with this is that there was no resolution. Sure, the main character had a problem and then she overcame it, but the reader was not part of this transformation.
I feel like the author had all of the strings to this plot tightly in her hands, but she never found the right way to weave together the mother/daughter, bee/society, or sexuality/familial relations. As a reader I was left wanting more, but feeling like the door had been closed on my curious face.
Overall disappointing, sad face.
collismeanshill's review against another edition
3.0
Life is messy, growing up is hard and no one really knows anyone - not really - in the end.
the_sassy_bookworm's review
2.0
I thought I'd enjoy this one more then I did! I was laboring under the impression it was going to be similar to "The Secret Life of Bees" and it just wasn't. The characters were pretty one dimensional and the ending was abrupt to say the least!