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Summary: Bee Season
Review: Bee Season is has a very different plot from other books. It opens with the feeling that this is a book about the coming of age book but instead it is a peer into the twisted world that is around us. It is well written and would be recommended for a more adult audience. Its originality and descriptions make it a good book, while the plot, though new could use some work. All in all interesting and somewhat captivating.
Rating: 
Summary: Bee Season
Review: The back cover tells of a young mediocre girl that discovers her talent for spelling, and with her fathers spiritual guidance flourishes. This is true for about the first half of the book. It then tells of her brothers quest for religious happiness, and the mothers criminal life. I found although this was an okay book, it was not what was described on the back or what I was expecting.
This was an easy read, but it is almost as though you just need to finish it. It would be interesting if Goldberg wrote a short novel on the mother. She was amazingly described and very interesting. A good book if you know what your getting into.
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Summary: One of the Best
Review: A wonderful story about the Naumann family, Myla Golberg's Bee Season focuses on the year 9-year-old Eliza discovers a talent for spelling bees. In contrast to the rest of her family, however, Eliza doesn't construct or manipulate anything in her rise to the top. While father Aaron obsessively studies the kabbalah, mother Miriam constructs a secret world and brother Aaron actively searches for the meaning of life, Eliza simply serves as a pure and perfect channel for the essence of everything her family is truly seeking. Writing with humor and wisdom, Goldberg portrays the depth of each family member sympathetically. Anyone who has read and appreciated the works of Chaim Potok may find a place of honor for Bee Season on their bookshelf. I recommend it highly as one of the best books I've ever read.
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Summary: What happened?
Review: This book made an 180 degree turn halfway through. The story of Eliza, a child that is a misfit in a family of misfits gets her chance to shine when she wins her school's spelling bee. But, then all of a sudden we lose that storyline and the book and its characters change into these dark figures that hardly resemble what you originally bought the book for. I do not recommend this book as advertised. It would only disappoint!
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Summary: Didn't love it, didn't hate it!
Review: I felt this book was well written and an easy read. I couldn't stop reading it, yet I didn't find the story line all that great. I thought the mother character was interesting, and I wish there could have been more about her. All in all the book was ok, but not one of my favorites.
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Summary: Chaos into order........3 1/2 stars!!
Review: Bee Season is the story of a family whose secret desires begin to emerge when the young daughter succeeds in winning a spelling bee. Eliza, the daughter, has had an amazingly unaccomplished academic life. She is in the slow track classes and nothing much is ever expected from her, at school or at home. When she wins the school spelling bee no one can believe it! As her spelling accomplishments progress, her family begins to unravel. Her mother Miriam sees the ability of her daughter to focus on the order of letters in words and begins to pursue her own dream of perfection more intensely. The father, a Jewish man of strong faith, begins to channel all his attention to his daughter, along with his pursuit of Jewish mysticism. Previously, all of his attention had been focused on his teen-age son, aiming him at a spiritual life. The son, Aaron, then begins to seek out the face of God on his own, leading him into new territory.
Through out this novel each character is seeking perfection in their own manner, but what occurs is complete disorder. How this can go from chaos to order again is hard to imagine, but one of these individuals thinks that they can re-order their universe and attempts to do so in a totally unselfish manner.
The family is interesting, the story well told and the ending...well...selfless.
Rating: 
Summary: give it a chance
Review: I was not immediately taken by the book, but because it was the only one I brought with me on vacation, I continued to read it... and I was glad I did. This book takes a potentially dull and banal subject, and makes it compelling.
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Summary: If you love the art of language
Review: If you love the art of language you will love this book. The characters are endearing and I didn't want this book to end. Eliza and her family each grow in different directions and though it is sad to see a break down of a family you still feel there is hope and that maybe all that hope lies in Eliza. There is also a spirituality to this book but not what one would expect - especially from Aaron the teenage brother. Each character is allowed to grow into their own interpretation of spirituality. Myla Goldberg has a gift of language that she shares with the readers. She is a truly talented writer and I anxiously await her next book.
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Summary: Unique Characters...Interesting Story
Review: Odd, interesting, dynamic, mystic, weird, all of these adjectives describe my reactions to this novel. I waited a long time to get this book from the library and although I didn't find it boring, I was mildly disappointed after all the hype that surrounded it.
Eliza a second grader is not your average child. Enmeshed in a most dysfunctional home, ignored and a loner she discovers an incredible talent accidentally during a spelling bee. Her father Saul latches onto this and centers his attention exclusively onto her by training her in Kabalistic mysticism while trying to experience it vicariously through her.
Aaron is the adolescent older brother, who up until Eliza's discovery had been the chosen child studying with his father to the exclusion of all else. His revolt to being replaced is to seek solace with a cult like religious experience perhaps providing for him a real family-like structure for the first time.
Miriam the mother of the family is equally as odd and plays a smaller part in the story until the end, where she experiences a physic breakdown and the reader is thrown into her odd, distorted, disconnected world.
Goldberg weaves an unusual, distrubing tale of lost and found relationships with people, objects, words and God. Her beautiful writing and vivid images more than make up for a sometimes confusing, slow storyline that at times threatens to overcome the reader.
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Summary: bee season is alright
Review: Overall, this was a decent book. On one hand, I couldn't stop reading til I was finished, in part due to habit, in part due to story line, in part due to the ease of the read. The story was well written, indeed. There was a consistent quirk in some of the sentence structure which I found a little annoying. The story can be seen from numerous angles but is brought together on the basis of change, growth, future, acceptance, family, and obsession. On the other hand, with a few minor changes this should really be classified as a book for young adults. While not meant to be a put down, the writer is much more in tune with the children. While reading, I consistently looked to see why it would be an adult book. Here are my reasons: 1. sex specs 2. mystical judaism references (it's beginner but it's involved..) 3. the advanced writing style. I'd still let any kid read it, but I have philosphy about letting kids read what they want to read.. anyway.. A quick and easy read and one not to be underestimated in depth. Goldberg's flair for the written word is sure to come back biting after further personal exploration and life experience.
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