From a beguiling voice in Mexican fiction comes an astonishing novel—her first to be translated into English—about a mysterious child with the power to change a family’s history in a country on the verge of revolution.
From the day that old Nana Reja found a baby abandoned under a bridge, the life of a small Mexican town forever changed. Disfigured and covered in a blanket of bees, little … bees, little Simonopio is for some locals the stuff of superstition, a child kissed by the devil. But he is welcomed by landowners Francisco and Beatriz Morales, who adopt him and care for him as if he were their own. As he grows up, Simonopio becomes a cause for wonder to the Morales family, because when the uncannily gifted child closes his eyes, he can see what no one else can—visions of all that’s yet to come, both beautiful and dangerous. Followed by his protective swarm of bees and living to deliver his adoptive family from threats—both human and those of nature—Simonopio’s purpose in Linares will, in time, be divined.
Set against the backdrop of the Mexican Revolution and the devastating influenza of 1918, The Murmur of Bees captures both the fate of a country in flux and the destiny of one family that has put their love, faith, and future in the unbelievable.
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Beautiful use of poetic language. Characters you learn to care about. Interesting historical information about Mexico post WWI. Fantasy intwined with realistic historical fiction.
I loved the setting of Mexico and the time period! I was hooked from the start! The story had a magical and poetic quality to it.
Best book I’ve read in a long time! Tell everyone especially those who read a lot.
Consuming and so well written.
The story is set in a tumultuous political period of the Mexican Revolution in the early 20th century. It tells the story of the Morales family, and how they find Simonopio, an abandoned child with a severe deformity who is surrounded by bees. He is adopted into the Morales family but soon reveals himself to be a mystic figure around which the events of the novel spiral outwards.
The novel is steeped in the magical realism tradition of Latin America and Segovia’s writing is never stronger than when she is describing Simonopio’s uncanny understanding of events around him. Like many novels in this tradition, it is populated with multiple POV characters who narrate events from their perspective, each with a distinct voice, emphasizing the communal nature of their connection to each other in Linares and the collective effects of trauma and evil. This aspect is rendered easily through the excellent Audible narration.
The prose is lyrical – I almost wish I’d read it in Spanish first. The beauty and lushness of the language carries well in translation, and the writer takes her time with languid sentences and rich descriptions to allow readers to fully immerse themselves in the narration. An important work of historical fiction. 5
Did not care for it. Unrealistic.
Could have used some editing, but overall a good story line.
Good story; well written (good translation).
I loved this book. It was everything, funny, inspiring, family dynamics, magical and a truly evil bad dude. The story was original And drew me into the lives of these interesting people.
I’m still wondering what to think about this book. It was a page-turner at times, however, much too often the pages dragged on-and-on with lamenting about uncontrollable circumstances. Historically, learning about the devastation of the Spanish Flu in the early 1900s was interesting as was the hierarchy of the landowners and government. I did finish the book as I definitely wanted to know what happened, but unlike many of the books I read, I was happy to be finished.
Loved the writing. The translator deserves a lot of credit. It was the beautiful sentences that drew me in from the very beginning. It is a story about deep and abiding love, family, and an overarching sense of spirituality. Definitely a good vs evil. There is a passage about grief that tore at my heart because I could so relate it to my mother’s loss of two children.
Best book I’ve read in years. Magical!
Lovely book about tolerance and love. I highly recommend it!
A beautiful dual story of Mexico during a troubling time and a family dealing with their own troubles. Beautifully written and wonderfully translated.
A weird but interesting story in northern Mexico. I kept reading to see how it ended, Simonopio, an abandoned baby, leads quite a life in the whole story.
As soon as I finished this book I went back to the beginning and started reading it again. Best book I read all summer.
This book was so unique. The ending threw me completely. I’ve never read another book like it. It was good. I wouldn’t say it was the best book I’ve ever read but it held my attention and the writing style was beautiful. I found out another person in my family was reading it at the same time even though we didn’t plan that at all. It was fun to compare thoughts. A quick and easy read with a surprise at the end.
Just read this beautifully translated story (historical fiction). Takes place in rural Mexico, about a disfigured boy who was abandoned and found by a loving agrarian family. He turns out to have extra sensory talents that help their farming success, and he can also sense impending tragedy. No sex, references to violence but no gratuitous descriptions. A very sweet tale.
Surprising and charming story
This is a really good book. There are a lot of flashbacks which makes it a little hard to follow at times, but a very good read. It took me a long time to read this book, but it was worth it. Stick with it. You won’t regret it.
Good character development. Loved the descriptions of the setting; feel like I’ve been there.