The Music of Bees: A Novel
A NATIONAL BESTSELLER!
A Good Morning America BUZZ PICK | A Good Housekeeping Book Club Pick | IndieNext Pick | LibraryReads Pick | Recommended by People ∙ The Washington Post ∙ Woman's World ∙ NY Post ∙ BookRiot ∙ Bookish ∙ Christian Science Monitor ∙ Nerd Daily ∙ The Tempest ∙ Midwestness ∙ The Coil ∙ Read It Forward ∙ and more!
“An exquisite debut that combines a moving tale of friendship with a fascinating primer on bees.”--People
“This heartwarming, uplifting story will make you want to call your own friends, not to mention grab some honey.”--Good Housekeeping
Three lonely strangers in a rural Oregon town, each working through grief and life's curveballs, are brought together by happenstance on a local honeybee farm where they find surprising friendship, healing--and maybe even a second chance--just when they least expect it.
Forty-four-year-old Alice Holtzman is stuck in a dead-end job, bereft of family, and now reeling from the unexpected death of her husband. Alice has begun having panic attacks whenever she thinks about how her life hasn't turned out the way she dreamed. Even the beloved honeybees she raises in her spare time aren't helping her feel better these days.
In the grip of a panic attack, she nearly collides with Jake--a troubled, paraplegic teenager with the tallest mohawk in Hood River County--while carrying 120,000 honeybees in the back of her pickup truck. Charmed by Jake's sincere interest in her bees and seeking to rescue him from his toxic home life, Alice surprises herself by inviting Jake to her farm.
And then there's Harry, a twenty-four-year-old with debilitating social anxiety who is desperate for work. When he applies to Alice's ad for part-time farm help, he's shocked to find himself hired. As an unexpected friendship blossoms among Alice, Jake, and Harry, a nefarious pesticide company moves to town, threatening the local honeybee population and illuminating deep-seated corruption in the community. The unlikely trio must unite for the sake of the bees--and in the process, they just might forge a new future for themselves.
Beautifully moving, warm, and uplifting, The Music of Bees is about the power of friendship, compassion in the face of loss, and finding the courage to start over (at any age) when things don't turn out the way you expect.
“A hopeful, uplifting story about the power of chosen family and newfound home and beginning again . . . but it’s the bees, with all their wonder and intricacy and intrigue, that make this story sing.”
--Laurie Frankel, New York Times bestselling author of This Is How It Always Is
"Eileen Garvin's debut novel is uplifting, funny, bold, and inspirational. The Music of Bees sings!"
--Adriana Trigiani, New York Times bestselling author
A Good Morning America BUZZ PICK | A Good Housekeeping Book Club Pick | IndieNext Pick | LibraryReads Pick | Recommended by People ∙ The Washington Post ∙ Woman's World ∙ NY Post ∙ BookRiot ∙ Bookish ∙ Christian Science Monitor ∙ Nerd Daily ∙ The Tempest ∙ Midwestness ∙ The Coil ∙ Read It Forward ∙ and more!
“An exquisite debut that combines a moving tale of friendship with a fascinating primer on bees.”--People
“This heartwarming, uplifting story will make you want to call your own friends, not to mention grab some honey.”--Good Housekeeping
Three lonely strangers in a rural Oregon town, each working through grief and life's curveballs, are brought together by happenstance on a local honeybee farm where they find surprising friendship, healing--and maybe even a second chance--just when they least expect it.
Forty-four-year-old Alice Holtzman is stuck in a dead-end job, bereft of family, and now reeling from the unexpected death of her husband. Alice has begun having panic attacks whenever she thinks about how her life hasn't turned out the way she dreamed. Even the beloved honeybees she raises in her spare time aren't helping her feel better these days.
In the grip of a panic attack, she nearly collides with Jake--a troubled, paraplegic teenager with the tallest mohawk in Hood River County--while carrying 120,000 honeybees in the back of her pickup truck. Charmed by Jake's sincere interest in her bees and seeking to rescue him from his toxic home life, Alice surprises herself by inviting Jake to her farm.
And then there's Harry, a twenty-four-year-old with debilitating social anxiety who is desperate for work. When he applies to Alice's ad for part-time farm help, he's shocked to find himself hired. As an unexpected friendship blossoms among Alice, Jake, and Harry, a nefarious pesticide company moves to town, threatening the local honeybee population and illuminating deep-seated corruption in the community. The unlikely trio must unite for the sake of the bees--and in the process, they just might forge a new future for themselves.
Beautifully moving, warm, and uplifting, The Music of Bees is about the power of friendship, compassion in the face of loss, and finding the courage to start over (at any age) when things don't turn out the way you expect.
“A hopeful, uplifting story about the power of chosen family and newfound home and beginning again . . . but it’s the bees, with all their wonder and intricacy and intrigue, that make this story sing.”
--Laurie Frankel, New York Times bestselling author of This Is How It Always Is
"Eileen Garvin's debut novel is uplifting, funny, bold, and inspirational. The Music of Bees sings!"
--Adriana Trigiani, New York Times bestselling author
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Community Reviews
I thought I was going to like this more. It's nothing spectacular, it's a sweet story about a forty-four woman who is stuck in a dead end job, recently widowed and raising bees when her life collides with an eighteen year old. Literally. Alice is driving home when her truck nearly crashes into Jake, a paraplegic in a wheelchair riding along the side of the road. Jake was injured during a high school party and has a toxic home life. He ends up moving in with Alice and becoming a bee apprentice. Harry, a 24 year old with social anxiety, answers an add for part time farm help for Alice. The 3 of them unite for the sake of the bees but also find friendship and purpose along the way. Alice is like a mentor/favorite aunt to these two young men.
I really liked Jake, his sense of humor and attitude. I was rooting for Harry. He had a rough go of things by always being the fall guy for others. I did not like the background story of Alice's job at the county and the growing concern over a pesticide that was being used in the town. Skimmed a lot of this. Just too hokey for me. This would make a nice Lifetime movie.
I really liked Jake, his sense of humor and attitude. I was rooting for Harry. He had a rough go of things by always being the fall guy for others. I did not like the background story of Alice's job at the county and the growing concern over a pesticide that was being used in the town. Skimmed a lot of this. Just too hokey for me. This would make a nice Lifetime movie.
Wonderful story and characters. Learned a lot about bees. The friendships were delightful and unexpected
Really loved this one!
“Al Holtzman had been a serial philanthropist. He hadn’t gotten involved in people’s problems. He had gotten involved in their solutions.” (64)
“And that was how Alice Holtzman, aged 44, assistant to the county planning director, beekeeper, orphan, widow, and mother to no one, found herself under the cottonwood tree with 3 young men, drinking lemonade and listening to their stories… Sorrow released a person from common constraints, and in their grief they could be their true, bald selves. If others chose to witness that, to truly see others, well it changed everything.” 198
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