The Bee Sting
ISBN 9780374600303 | |
The Bee Sting is a 2023 novel by
Narrative
The novel tells of the Barnes family, a once powerful and wealthy family in Ireland who are now facing financial difficulties after the
The daughter of the family, Cassie, starts the book in her final year of high school, then attends university at Trinity College in Dublin, excited to escape the small town in which she grew up. Cassie has a toxic friendship with Elaine, a friendship with mutual mistrust that eventually boils over when the two are roommates at Trinity College. The son in the family, 12 year old PJ, is dealing with adolescent angst, he fears his parents are getting a divorce. He interacts with a gamer he met online via text message and plans to run away from home and live with him. At the start of the book, he deals with a bully who is upset because he believes his mother was ripped off by the family's business and spends much of his time in the woods, with his friend Nev, to escape the atmosphere home. Later, his social standing deteriorates alongside his family's financial position, and he spends increasing amounts of time with his father, working on the bunker.
Dickie's wealthy father, Maurice, returns from his retirement in Portugal and appears as though he may be the family's salvation. However his involvement uncovers further problems at the car dealership and he brings Elaine's father, Big Mike, in to run the business in Dickie's stead. This drives Dickie further into his obsession over the bunker and survivalism, and sets up the book's denouement.
Reception
Literary review aggregator Book Marks characterized most reviews of the novel as "Rave" reviews.[4]
Writing for
Awards and honors
The Bee Sting was included on the year-end lists of the best books of 2023 published by The New York Times[8] and The New Yorker.[9]
Year | Award | Result | Ref. |
---|---|---|---|
2023 | Booker Prize | Shortlist | [10] |
2023 | An Post Irish Book of the Year
|
Winner | [11] |
2024 | Nero Book Award (Fiction) | Winner | [2] |
References
- ^ "The Bee Sting". Archived from the original on October 19, 2023. Retrieved October 19, 2023.
- ^ a b Creamer, Ella (January 30, 2024). "Paul Murray and Fern Brady win inaugural Nero book awards". The Guardian.
- ^ "Gold Prize: Book of the Year: Paul Murray - The Bee Sting". Nero Book Awards. March 14, 2024. Retrieved March 14, 2024.
- ^ "Book Marks reviews of The Bee Sting by Paul Murray". Book Marks. Archived from the original on November 27, 2023. Retrieved October 22, 2023.
- ^ Jordan, Justine (May 31, 2023). "The Bee Sting by Paul Murray review – a tragicomic triumph". The Guardian. Archived from the original on July 1, 2023. Retrieved October 19, 2023.
- ^ Doll, Jen. "A Rollicking Tragicomic Tale of Unending Family Drama". Archived from the original on October 19, 2023. Retrieved October 19, 2023.
- ^ Clark, Jonathan Russell (August 10, 2023). "The epic family novel is alive and well in the masterful hands of Paul Murray". Los Angeles Times. Archived from the original on October 19, 2023. Retrieved October 19, 2023.
- ^ Schaub, Michael (November 28, 2023). "'NYT' Names Its 10 Best Books of 2023". Kirkus Reviews. Archived from the original on December 4, 2023. Retrieved December 4, 2023.
- ^ "The Best Books of 2023". The New Yorker. November 29, 2023. Archived from the original on December 5, 2023. Retrieved December 4, 2023.
- ^ "The Booker Prize 2023 The Booker Prizes". thebookerprizes.com. Archived from the original on August 1, 2023. Retrieved October 19, 2023.
- ^ Schaub, Michael (December 8, 2023). "'The Bee Sting' Wins An Post Irish Book Award". Kirkus Reviews. Retrieved December 9, 2023.