Book Notes | ‘Miss Benson’s Beetle’
Miss Marjory Benson hates her job teaching cookery to young girls in England in 1950, and one day she walks out of the school. Once she gets home, she formulates a plan. Her father was an entomologist and shared with her his interest in the myth of a golden beetle in New Caledonia. She’s going to find it!
Marjory knows nothing about New Caledonia, but plots her escape from England. She advertises for a French-speaking assistant, interviews candidates, plans her travel, and orders supplies for the beetle-finding expedition. Enid Pretty—who applied but wasn’t interviewed for the position and is Marjory’s total opposite—confronts Marjory at the train station and soon the two of them are off together on the expedition to New Caledonia via train, ship, and airplane.
Enid proves invaluable to the expedition, stealing equipment they need, including a Jeep, and endearing herself to the officials and local people. Marjorie and Enid establish their base camp in a ramshackle cabin near the top of the mountain and start collecting insects, ever looking for the elusive golden beetle. Unbeknownst to them, they are being stalked by the unstable and dangerous Mr. Mundic, who also applied for the expedition assistant position but was rejected.
Members of the UMRA Book Club had mixed reactions to the historical novel. Some felt much of it was unbelievable. Others felt one just had “to go with it” and not try to make sense of it. Some thought it was hilarious; others thought it was sad.
The overriding themes in the book were noted by the book group members: the friendship that grew between the two disparate women helped them forge on with their quest, people destroyed by war (Marjory’s four brothers were killed in WWII and Mr. Mundic suffered horrific PTSD), and appreciation of the natural world.
Do the two friends find the golden beetle? No spoiler here—you’ll have to read this quirky book to discover the answer.
— Stephanie Daily, UMRA Book Club I
Book Club announces May 19 and summer meeting plans
Fri, May 19 2023, 2pm
UMRA member Stephanie Daily will lead a discussion of Miss Benson’s Beetle by Rachel Joyce, which debuted as a New York Times bestseller in 2020, when the UMRA Book Club meets at 2 p.m. on Friday, May 19.
Beth Bedell will lead a discussion of Flight Behavior, a 2012 novel by Barbara Kingsolver, on June 16. And Diane Madlon-Kay will lead a discussion of The Heart is a Lonely Hunter by Carson McCullers, first published in 1940, when the group meets on July 21.
All three meetings will be held via Zoom. Email Pat Tollefson at [email protected] for more information, including suggestions for starting a new book club.
Upcoming Events
Generative artificial intelligence (AI) has attracted substantial debate recently because it can be used in many contexts, including educational settings to do things such as answer exam questions and write papers. But what is generative AI? And how can we know if it’s a good thing or a bad thing? Law School Professor Daniel Schwarcz will enlighten us during UMRA’s Luncheon Forum on April 23.
UMRA’s spring Armchair Traveler Program from 10 to 11:30 a.m. on Wednesday, April 24, will take us to South Korea with Marilyn DeLong and to Germany with Lynn C. Anderson. Please mark your calendars and save the date.
Silk Parachute, an anthology of essays and the 40th of 44 published books by author John McPhee, will be the topic of discussion when UMRA’s Fourth Friday Book Club meets via Zoom from 2 to 3:30 p.m. CDT on April 26.
We are fortunate to have Peter Moe, UMRA member and former Minnesota Landscape Arboretum director, to lead this approximately 3.7-mile hike at the Arboretum on Monday, May 6! Plan to have lunch together after the hike at the Eatery café inside the Oswald Visitor Center.
This session will continue the discussion begun in the May 8, 2023 session. See that article for details.
If you currently live in your own home or apartment, have you looked ahead to when you might want to consider a senior living option? Do you have any idea what those options might be? How much they cost? What they provide? UMRA’s May 14 workshop will provide an overview of the world of senior living and the basic information you need.
You’re invited to join the final Family History Interest Group meeting for 2023–24. This will be an opportunity to ask questions related to family history, share insights, talk about recent projects, and suggest topics for next year.
Stephanie Daily will lead the discussion of Fuzz: When Nature Breaks the Law by best-selling author Mary Roach when the UMRA Book Club meets via Zoom at 2 p.m. on Friday, May 17.
The May 20 hike will start at the Historic Lift Bridge in Stillwater and go along the river to the new bridge, cross over and then back on the Wisconsin side, a total of approximately 5 miles. Most of the route is paved. We will eat lunch after at Brian's Bar and Grill in Stillwater. Car pooling will be available.
Climatologist and meteorologist Mark Seeley joined the U of M faculty in 1978 and has been a weekly commentator on Minnesota Public Radio since 1992. We are honored to welcome him as our guest speaker for UMRA’s May Luncheon Forum and 2024 Annual Meeting. He is always entertaining and informative.
UMRA’s Fourth Friday Book Club welcomes back, for the second time, author Julie Schumacher, U of M Regents professor of creative writing and English, for a conversation about her novel The Shakespeare Requirement.
We are in for a treat on June 3! Lynn Anderson, will lead us on trails at two parks near her Monticello home. Bring a bag lunch and we will gather in Lynn's yard along the Mississippi River for eating and socializing after the hike.
Get out to the ballpark with fellow UMRA members for the annual U of M Day at Target Field as the Minnesota Twins take on the Oakland Athletics on June 14 at 7:10 p.m.
Please join us at 9:30 on June 17, 2024 for a walk around Lake Como in St. Paul before attending the UMRA Summer Social and Picnic starting at 11 at the Como Pavilion. A perfect opportunity to get in a walk before we gather to celebrate summer.
Picnic under the covered, open-air Como pavilion, gaze at the water, spy some birds, catch up with friends and former colleagues, and meet new members. We’ll have lunch with plenty of time for visiting and then compete in teams as we are challenged by our Quiz master(s)!
Healthy aging, mindfulness, fighting ageism, and more will be the focus of the third annual Age-Friendly University Day to be held on the U of M Twin Cities campus.