What a pleasant surprise. I had not read any of Joyce's novels before, but I will definitely look for them now. From a shocking beginning to a shocking ending, I could not put this book down. There was something surprising on every page. This is NOT a highly suspenseful novel, nor is it filled with fast-paced action, but the characters and situations are engrossing, sometimes humorous and sometimes irritating, and I really wanted to know what would happen next.

Miss Benson is leading an ordinary and unfulfilling life when she decides to walk out of her teaching job, steal some boots, and go on an adventure to New Caledonia in search of an illusive golden beetle. Accompanying her is her total opposite, the annoying and VERY talkative Enid Pretty. Their backstories and how they come to be friends/allies and the detailed adventures in search of the beetle make up the story. Although the writing won't win awards for literature, the descriptive passages are beautiful and the care with which Joyce develops these characters is masterful. I did not expect to like this book much. At first, I was almost skimming through, but before long I was enthralled with the setting, characters and plot. I really liked it!!

From Rachel Joyce, the bestselling author of THE UNLIKELY PILGRIMAGE OF HAROLD FRY, comes MISS BENSON’S BEETLE, a hope-filled and joyful story about two unlikely women on the journey of a lifetime.

The year is 1950, and although World War II is over, London and many other major cities are still rationing goods and materials and rebuilding their shattered communities. Husbands, sons and brothers have died, and the women of the world are starting to come into their own, having taken up major roles in both war efforts and homes. One of these ladies is Margery Benson, a schoolteacher and devout spinster who was raised by her mother and religious aunts after her father died by suicide upon receiving the news that his sons had been killed at war. Now in her late 40s, Miss Benson is still ambling by, living in her deceased aunt’s cold, austere flat, surviving on scraps and teaching home economics to young women.

One day, a vicious note mocking a plump, dowdy version of Miss Benson dubbed the “Virgin Margery” goes around her classroom, leaving her shocked and hurt. But what bothers her the most is not the depiction of her weight, or the pun about her spinsterhood, but the fact that she can find nothing untrue in the picture. Not only has she let herself go, she has ended up at a dead-end job that she doesn’t even care about. It is then that she recalls her childhood dream of being the first person to find the Golden Beetle of New Caledonia. The Golden Beetle has been referenced in the writings of Darwin and other explorers, but no one has properly “found it” --- that is, located and preserved specimens and delivered them to the Natural History Museum to be described and given its Latin name. It is then that Miss Benson’s life truly begins.

Miss Benson starts by posting an ad in the local paper to find an assistant to accompany her on the 10,000–mile journey to New Caledonia. It is answered by three normal people and a woman named Enid Pretty who cannot spell. Ignoring the latter, she meets with the other applicants and begins her own paperwork and packing for the trip. Unfortunately for Miss Benson, they are all a bit off, especially Mr. Mundic, a paranoid and cryptic POW who seems to be set on guns and protection and not the gentle but studious hunt for a mysterious beetle. After a series of stops and starts, Miss Benson ends up offering Enid the job sight unseen. And what a sight she is.

Enid is a diminutive blonde bombshell with the lungs of an opera singer and the charm of a Victorian rake. From the moment they meet --- with Miss Benson donning her version of a safari suit and Enid wearing a tight pink dress --- the latter does not stop talking. Miss Benson is as put off by her new assistant as she is intrigued: Who is this woman, and why would she ever want to travel the world for a beetle? Miss Benson is too afraid to ask, but it is clear that both women have their own reasons for wanting to leave the country.

As the two unlikely companions begin the five-week journey to Australia, they strike up a tenuous friendship, bolstered by Enid’s careful nursing of Miss Benson when she falls deathly ill with seasickness. They face numerous hilarious obstacles, including language barriers, passport fraud and plain incompatibility, but slowly Miss Benson starts to realize that Enid might be the best friend she ever had. Unbeknownst to the oddest couple in New Caledonia is the third member of their group, Mr. Mundic, who is positive that he was meant to be Miss Benson’s assistant and is dead set on getting rid of Enid.

MISS BENSON’S BEETLE is hopeful and heartwarming, but it is an equally atmospheric and vibrant read that touches on not only the results of war, but also the joy of travel and the excitement of discovery. Joyce effortlessly weaves feelings of hopelessness, danger and misadventure with themes of resilience and endurance, resulting in a completely captivating and absorbing novel. Though the premise feels familiar in some ways, I loved that the book was about two women striking out on their own, and not about chasing men or pursuing typically women-filled roles. Miss Benson’s role as a spinster makes her unique enough, but her passion for finding the Golden Beetle fills even airheaded Enid with warmth and envy, and adds an interesting element of science and history to the story.

Margery and Enid are absolutely unforgettable, and the way that Joyce pushes each of them into growth and change is equal parts touching and laugh-out-loud funny. I cannot begin to count the number of times I found myself giggling at either the situation --- like Miss Benson taking her passport portrait with another woman in the booth --- or the dialogue, like Enid saying that it’s no wonder a flightless bird is native to only one country (how would it get anywhere else?). Although Miss Benson is our protagonist, Enid is such a perfect foil that she practically leaps off the page in every scene, and the ways in which she encourages Miss Benson to do the same are masterful. Joyce pays careful attention to detail and pacing so that their development feels natural and organic.

If you’ve been longing for a book about fully realized women helping one another grow through kindness and acceptance, this “happy” book with a lot of depth is exactly what you need. Both women (and Mr. Mundic) have been influenced and informed by past traumas, and though their friendship feels inevitable, the journey there is an absolute riot.

Perfect for readers of Joyce’s previous works and MAJOR PETTIGREW’S LAST STAND, this delightful mix of sweet and witty --- with just a hint of mystery --- will sweep readers off their feet.

Rachel Joyce has written a sad, funny, adventure story about the friendship of two very different women. Margery Benson has spent the last twenty years teaching cooking at a girl's school She has lived a sad and solitary life with her two aunt's after her father dies and her four brothers are all killed in the first world war. One day Margery can't take it any longer and decides to go in search of an elusive beetle in New Caledonia. To accompany her, Margery employs an eccentric woman named Enid Pretty.
Margery is a large rather sheltered woman while Enid is her opposite. She is small and very outgoing. The two women begin the long journey by ship from England to New Caledonia. Through the days and months to find this elusive beetle, the women become friends.
The book is a wonderfully fun, witty, and charming book on friendship and two women who find themselves in an adventure of a lifetime.

This is the fourth book I’ve read by Rachel Joyce and other than being populated with quirky interesting characters, none of them are like the other, and forget about being predictable. This is a book about women and for women that says, go get ‘em, you got this, and go for broke because that’s what Marge and Enid do, amidst rough beginnings, trepidations and risk taking. What an unlikely pair! Yet there were moments of laugh out loud humor that startled my husband as we were reading in the quiet of an evening. You have to suspend belief at times to enjoy the wackiness which I was more than willing to go for the entertainment I received in return. It was the perfect read for the quarantined days leading up to Christmas.

“Miss Benson’s Beetle” was such a fun read. Travel adventures, science, women helping each other. There is a little something for everyone in this one. I couldn’t put this book down!

**I received an electronic ARC from NetGalley in exchange for a fair and unbiased review of this book.

I love how Rachel Joyce crafts these stories that are so unique and includes characters that are quirky but completely realistic and relatable. Miss Benson's Beetle gives us not one but two strong female characters that truly transform over the course of this engaging novel.

Margery Benson has lived a regimented stifled life, in my opinion, and needing a new direction for her life, on a whim, she decides to follow her childhood dreams and head to New Caldedonia in search of the golden beetle that her father dreamt of finding. She interviews assistants, order supplies and makes travel plans for this expedition. At the last minute, she has to hire a different assistant than she had planned, asking her to meet her at the dock, sight unseen. When assistant Enid Pretty arrives, Margery is in for a surprise. The two women embark on this life changing mission and their adventures make for quite a story.

I truly enjoyed this novel and the beauty of the story. The story of Margery and Enid is a great narrative of the power of friendship, resilience and determination.

I received this book courtesy of the publisher through NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

To be completely honest here, I was under the impression that the beetle in question was actually a VW, not, you know, a beetle! So there was a touch of cognitive dissonance when I got past the first chapter.

I did like this quite a bit, I thought the post-war description of Britain was very well done and I loved the contrast with the tropical island Miss Benson lands on. I also liked that although she had faults, and was not described as attractive at all, that had nothing to do with the story, it was just how Miss Benson was.

I would recommend this to anyone who wants a well-written novel to curl up with for an afternoon.

I received a free ARC of this book from NetGalley in exchange for my honest opinion

#MissBensonsBeetle #NetGalley

One of the best books I read this year!! School teacher Margery Benson gets fed up with her meaningless existence and abruptly decides to go on an expedition to New Caledonia to look for a beetle she saw in a book as a child. She interviews three people as companions and winds up hiring her last choice, Enid Pretty. Enid has some secrets which follow them all along their journey. Beautiful book about friendship and courage. Highly recommend.

MISS BENSON'S BEETLE by Rachel Joyce (The Unlikely Pilgrimage of Harold Fry) is the top pick for the November 2020 Library Reads selections. I, too, am highly recommending this wonderful piece of writing filled with memorable, likeable characters. Fans of humorous but observant historical fiction like Dear Mrs. Bird or works by Helen Simonson are sure to enjoy this new title. In 1950, Miss Benson is teaching at an all girl's school in England and one day just chucks it all in to go off to the South Pacific and New Caledonia (map provided) to find the golden beetle that her Father told her about decades ago. She interviews a few possible assistants for the expedition and ends up having to "make do" with Edith Pretty a total scatterbrain, but extremely loyal young woman. Over the course of their adventure (battling storms, ineffectual bureaucracy, unwanted attention and much more), the two develop a deep and lasting friendship. MISS BENSON'S BEETLE received a starred review from Library Journal ("a delightful book ... sure to be a hit with book clubs") and Publishers Weekly. Questions and topics for discussion are included in the print copy and I am looking forward to listening to the variety of accents on the audio version, too.

I am not sure what I expected when I started reading this book. But while it was not what I thought it be, it was an entertaining read. I found myself chuckling at Margery’s shenanigans and her experiences as she interviews for an assistant to travel with her on the expedition to New Caledonia.

This is an exploration into growth and change. Both Margery and her assistant, Enid, are challenged by experiences in their past and yet find themselves changed as they make this journey of discovery.

Quirky characters, an exotic location, a developing relationship, and discovery makes for an interesting read.

Thank you to NetGalley and Dial Press for my advanced review copy. All opinions and thoughts are my own.

Take one middle-aged spinster with a small life and a big dream -- to find a legendary beetle in the South pacific. Add in one wild, talkative, but secretive young woman to be her assistant. It should be like oil and water, but somehow their travels & travails bring them to better understanding. It took me a while to get used to the story's separate strands, but the book was really enjoyable. I felt as if I really got to know the characters. I found the resolution of the book very satisfying.

Omg this was the cutest story I have read in such a long time!! I absolutely loved it! I highly recommend reading it.

Rachel Joyce is an eminently readable author I keep turning to even though I generally find her messages too simplistic and/or twee. I’ve read everything she’s published but doubt she’ll ever top The Love Song of Miss Queenie Hennessy. Miss Benson’s Beetle attracted me for being suitably different from the rest of her work: much of it takes place on the high seas or in New Caledonia rather than in England, and it is about two unlikely female adventurers who become dear friends as they chase their dreams in the early 1950s.

Margery Benson reminded me of Olive Kitteridge: a larger, older woman who doesn’t say or do what she’s expected to. Her lingering childhood fascination with a (possibly legendary) golden beetle spurs her to, in her mid-forties, leave her home ec teacher job in disgrace and plan an expedition to a French-run island halfway across the world. (I could imagine her being played by Miranda Hart in a television or film adaptation.) Enid Pretty, the twentysomething blonde bombshell who signs on as her field assistant at the last minute, is running from her past and desperate to have a baby.

The twin themes of the book are trauma and obsession, but it is a light-hearted read for all that. My main issue was that the subplots about a POW with PTSD and a murder investigation back in England draw attention away from the central story. Partly because of this, the novel felt interminable.

This is a book that will stay with me for a long time. It is atmospheric, emotional, and so compelling. I loved the quirky characters and the plot, and just everything about it. I would love to see a movie version!
Many thanks to Random House Publishing and to NetGalley for providing me with a galley in exchange for my honest opinion.

This type of book makes me believe in adventure, friendships, and that life is
Long and filled with every opportunity.

Was happy to highlight this title in Zoomer magazine’s Novel Encounters for November, my monthly look-ahead column of the forthcoming notable fiction books readers should look out for. (Full review and column at link)

I absolutely loved Miss Benson’s Beetle! It was warm, uplifting, emotional, sad, happy, everything you want in a book all rolled up into one.

We first meet Margery Benson when she is a young girl, looking at a book of her father’s - Incredible Creatures. She becomes fascinated with the creatures in the book, especially an elusive golden beetle.

We then meet Magery again in 1950, when she is an unmarried teacher, with not a lot of anything good happening in her life. She decides to quit it all and venture off in search of the golden beetle.

She advertises for an assistant and ends up with Enid Pretty, the exact opposite of her in everything from looks to personality. From her bleach blonde hair to her sandals with pom poms, she is not what you think of when you want a safari assistant.

But the two women set out on a great adventure. They form a friendship and a bond, built on shared hardships and humor. They find their greatest strengths together.

I really loved this charming book and I hope someone who makes movies would read it, because I think it would make such a good movie!

‘Miss Benson’s Beetle’ by Rachel Joyce is a charming and wonderful book about two women who find an unlikely, beautiful friendship. The main character, Margery, is a never-married, unhappy teacher in her 40s who decides to finally pursue her dream of becoming an entomologist and seek a gold beetle her father told her about as a girl, rumored to exist off the coast of Australia. Margery carefully plans her trip and seeks an assistant for her expedition to the other side of the world. She ultimately ends up with Enid, a quirky, brash woman in her twenties. Together, they embark on the adventure of a lifetime!

‘Miss Benson’s Beetle’ is written in such an immersive, authentic, and entertaining way. This is a very quirky, silly story at times, but oh so enjoyable! Margery and Enid are nuanced, flawed characters that have suffered loss and disappointment, but they allow themselves to be vulnerable with each other and form a beautiful friendship. Although the story is character-driven, there is plenty of action! They encounter many difficulties and navigate them in sometimes questionable ways. I really loved this story of two women who pursue their own interests and independence and form an enduring bond.

Thank you Random House Publishing Group / Dial Press Trade Paperback and NetGalley for providing this ARC.

Thanks to NetGalley and Random House Publishing Group- Random House for an egalley in exchange for an honest review.

I enjoyed every single moment of Margery Benson and Enid Pretty's adventure to 1950's New Caledonia. The unlikely pairing of these two women kept me on the couch reading when I probably should have been doing housework. I am a big fan of Rachel Joyce, who I feel is the female counterpart of Fredrik Backman. Thank goodness that not all characters are long-legged twenty-somethings. A novel that examines female friendships and the lasting effects of two world wars on its characters. I crown it with a 5 star because I could not think of anything that I didn't like in the novel.





#MissBensonsBeetle #NetGalley

Publication Date 03/11/20
Goodreads Review Published 04/12/20

In London in 1950, Margery Benson is getting by as a middle-aged single teacher of domestic science. The war is over but the city is still reeling from its losses, and she is surviving, but just. She needs new shoes, for one thing. She’s alone: Her mother died when she was a young adult; her father died when she was a child; the aunts she and her mother moved in with years before have died, and even their housekeeper has passed on. Margery doesn’t enjoy her life particularly; one thing that made her happy was studying beetles, but she gave that up 20 years before. One day, however, an incident at her school leads her to snap, and she impulsively decides to go all the way around the world to New Caledonia to try to find a golden beetle that may or may not exist. She is going to discover it. She sells most of what she owns, aside from the apartment her aunts left her, and advertises for an assistant. She is looking for someone who speaks French and can be dependable help as she pursues her dream.

After the sensible assistant who applied backs out at the last minute, Margery ends up having to work with Enid Pretty, a 20-something woman who has bleach-blonde hair, wears lots of makeup, and sports the most ridiculous clothes possible for traveling and eventually exploring in the tropics. Enid drives Margery absolutely crazy for the weeks they are aboard an ocean liner and then as they have to change to other transportation in Australia, but her only other choice was a POW who was quite unsettling. So the unusual pair make their way to New Caledonia and then finally, finally, after many problems, to the tiny “bungalow” out in the middle of nowhere on the very end of the island where they will go up a mountain and hunt for the golden beetle.

Enid has some secrets, and Margery has a lifetime worth of grief and loss she bottles up. And slowly, slowly, the two women become friends, help each other to face the darkness from their respective pasts, and encourage each other to achieve their dreams.

This story pairs two very different characters and slowly brings them close together; it’s really only the last third of the book, I think, that I found to be particularly sweet. Both could be so frustrating that their time together leading up to that point was sometimes annoying, and I was definitely ready for them to start being friends. But the end was really lovely and poignant, and it made it worth going through those most frustrating bits. The book is so much about grief and loss, about finding one’s way in life; about friendship; about women’s lives and the limitations they have faced over the years. I’m glad I got to read it.