The Barnes Family - The Bee Sting by Paul Murray
Let me begin by emphasizing how brilliant an author Paul Murray is to be able to pull off not one, not two, but four Points of View to tell a single captivating story.
Written from four points of view, is the story of the Barnes family. Father - Dickie is in a car business, the business is lucrative until it is not. The family is trying to keep their head above water. To support the family, his stunning wife Imelda sells jewellery and some furniture on eBay. Meanwhile, his intelligent daughter Cas, who is preparing to attend Trinity College in Dublin, gives up on getting good grades after learning about her father’s business troubles and spends her evenings drinking and having fun rather than studying. On the other hand, his youngest, PJ puts together an elaborate escape plan since he believes no one is looking and that he will be sent to boarding school in the middle of the financial crisis. The compelling writing and family drama in this story will have you gripped from beginning to end.
Let me begin by emphasizing how brilliant an author Paul Murray is to be able to pull off not one, not two, but four Points of View to tell a single captivating story.
The family drama was GIVING. Dickie's and Imelda’s past had me in all sorts of “OMG” moments.
Murray did an exquisite job of skilfully integrating the past and present. The writing is brilliant; the way that the locations, particularly the woods and bunker, are described, as well as the feelings and persons involved, is simply amazing.
This is my first book set in Ireland, so I appreciate that Murray added some elements of the presence of the Nazis in Ireland.
I can go on and on about this one. But believe me, the majority of the book is good but I think some parts of the book were unnecessary and it made the book boring and long. This book could easily have been 450 pages instead of 650 pages. Also, what was that ending?
