Bee Season: A Novel

Rating:
Summary: The only engaging character leaves you disappointed
Review: The plot has been well summarized in other reviews-so my only addition is to note that this book never got me to care about anyone other than Eliza. Every family member was a sad case, but it was Goldberg's ability to tap into Eliza's desperate longing for her father's attention that made her real. The other situations were sad, but not believable. I wouldn't even call them "bizarre"-but a lazy way to wrap things up.
The fact that Goldberg got me to want to reach into the book and give Eliza a hug was testament to the potential of this author.

Rating:
Summary: A Strong Start...
Review: But halfway through the book the author completely loses it. It almost seems as if another author wrote the second half because it goes from normal and interesting to weird, confusing, unrealistic and just plain freaky. It seems as if the author got halfway through and realized she wouldn't win any awards unless she made it more over the top and stylized. It really didn't work.

Rating:
Summary: A Dysfunctional Family Meets the Spelling Bee
Review: Here's a book with excellent writing and well-drawn, if somewhat unlikable characters. It's a coming-of-age story about Eliza Naumann, an "average" child in a family of brillant people. One day, Eliza and her teacher discover a special talent in Eliza: spelling. Eliza goes on to win her school spelling bee and ultimately ends up at the national competition. Woven throughout the book are mystical Jewish themes. Though I didn't care much for the other characters, I was rooting for Eliza and think this is an excellent first novel by author Myla Goldberg.

Rating:
Summary: A must-read!
Review: BEE SEASON by Myla Goldberg
September 5, 2004

A few years ago I had read a wonderful novel by Myla Goldberg, BEE SEASON. It is about a dysfunctional Jewish family whose lives are disrupted when the daughter, Eliza Naumann, wins a spelling bee. She had never displayed any aptitude in school for any subject whatsoever, and usually spent her leisure time watching television. It was her brother, Aaron, who was the star of the family, and he spent a lot of his free time with their father, Saul. When Saul realizes Eliza has talent after all, he decides to groom her into a championship speller, and now the time once spent with Aaron is spent with Eliza.

I had procrastinated too long in writing this review, so the details of the story have faded from my mind. I do remember one thing: this was one of my favorite books read in 2003. The main attraction to this book is the characters. The novel goes into detail the history of Saul and his wife Miriam, the rather unconventional lifestyle they had in their college years, their courtship and subsequent marriage. Some of the story leads to a somewhat paranormal type of story line, which may or may not turn off the reader. However, I felt that Goldberg's skills as a writer made this whole section of the book very believable and well done. Saul's obsession with Eliza and her spelling prowess take the novel to its climax, and the ending I found very unexpected, yet appropriate.

I rated this book 5 stars, for originality and content. It is a definitely recommended!

Rating:
Summary: "Kabbalah gone awry"
Review: As a therapist and teacher of Jewish mysticism (and author of a book on the healing wisdom of the Kabbalah) I was eager to read Bee Season. I was excited to hear about a novel that incorporated the mystical themes I had spent the past 30 years of my life studying.
Despite Goldberg's fine writing, somehow, I could not identify or empathize with any of the central characters in this book. I found myself disturbed by her characters and their strange distortion of the Kabbalah. A mentally ill mother whose psychosis takes on "mystical-Jewish" themes just did not cut it for me, even though I have worked with many therapy clients who used religion and spirituality to mask their emotional difficulties.
Furthermore, I found myself feeling aggravated by the fact that readers who were unfamiliar with the Kabbalah, might take Goldberg's "fantasy" as an accurate portrayal of what happens to people who engage in this ancient mystical tradition. Goldberg's strange portrayal of Jewish mystical family dysfunction might turn them off to reading anything meaningful about the Kabbalah.
Yet, despite my dismay over Goldberg's characters somehow I felt compelled to finish reading the book and even to take the time to write this review! I have to ask myself why?
Evidently, there was something compelling in this disturbing book that defies reason. I suppose I am just fascinated by the way that the study of Kabbalah, which has been one of my great loves since the age of 16,is finally becoming mainstream. To the degree that Kabbalah is understood or misunderstood, I somehow think it's a good sign for our times, that people are looking into this ancient mystical tradition.
One of the ancient biblical prophets wrote "behold days are coming, sayeth the Lord, and I will send a famine in the land. It will not be a famine for bread or water but to hear the word of God..." Perhaps, we are living in those very times. People are so hungry for meaning, so yearning for spiritual nourishment.
Let's hope that by the time Goldberg writes her next novel, she will find a spiritual mentor who can help her discover the true meaning and beauty of the Kabbalah. Perhaps with the right guidance she will learn to use her gift as a writer to inspire her readers with tales of redemption and healing--the true message of the ancient sages. (Estelle Frankel, author of Sacred Therapy: Jewish Spiritual Teachings on Emotional Healing & Inner Wholeness)

Rating:
Summary: Bland and distant
Review: Some people might enjoy this book, I guess. I wouldn't qualify it as "literature" (To Kill a Mockingbird), as much as a an attempt to create literature. If the author was trying to be low-key stylistically, she missed the train. Simply put, it lacked ENERGY. I could not sympathize with the characters and their individual plights of living in a dysfunctional family. In total opposition, David Sedaris comes to mind - and he is humorous.

The formulation of words in Eliza's heads during the spelling bees is magical and mystical, and beautifully described. She mines a talent that has gone unnoticed by the "system". The fact the reader had to be told it was so, was unnecessary.

I can neither recommend, nor 'not recommend' this book which leads me to believe that it was just boring.

Rating:
Summary: Left me wanting more
Review: Myla Goldberg's Bee Season was an interesting read. Eliza Naumann's family appears to be unraveling around her in a swirl of spelling bees and mysticism. The book kept me engaged and interested but I wanted more out of it. I think her parents, particularly the mother Miriam could have been fleshed out more, so that we were better able to understand her instability. Also, I felt that the conflict between Aaron and his father occurred for too long in silence and fizzled when they actually confronted one another. An interview with Goldberg states that her favorite type of book is one that pulls you into the middle of things, takes you for a ride and then just lets go. I suppose that was my biggest issue, I felt there was so much further to go with this family.
I would recommend this book. I read it for a book group and think that we will generate considerable discussion. This was her first book and I would definitely be interested in others.