Rachel Joyce
Miss Benson’s Beetle by Rachel Joyce is a quick and easy read about an unlikely friendship between two very different women as they set sail for a scientific expedition.
The central character is Margery Benson, a single school teacher in her mid-forties. World War II has ended, but England hasn’t fully recovered from the bombings, shortages in supplies, and rationing. Conscious of her shabby existence and shabby appearance, Margery is lonely and alone in the world. And then, one day, she snaps. Confiscating a particularly unflattering sketch of her drawn by one of her students, Margery does something uncharacteristically spontaneous. She runs out of the school, stealing the deputy’s new boots along the way. She has never stolen anything in her life.
Convinced it’s a matter of time before the police catch up with her, Margery decides to leave the country. She will indulge her lifelong fascination with insects by escaping to New Caledonia in quest of the elusive golden beetle to present to the Entomology Department at the Natural History Museum. She advertises for an assistant, and after a series of bumps and starts, she hires the young and flamboyant Enid Pretty. Their adventure begins.
The women are a study in contrasts—Margery in her dowdy brown outfits and sensible boots and Enid in her tight outfits, pom-pom sandals, and flaming blond hair. Their personalities couldn’t be more different. Margery is methodical, organized, prefers to remain unobtrusive and quiet. Enid is garrulous, charismatic, ostentatious, and with a flair for attracting male admirers. They travel together by sea, plane, boat, and car; survive cyclones and torrential rains; navigate challenging terrain; collect and document rare insects; share meager supplies; and experience unexpected dangers. As a result of their adventures and misadventures, they experience growth and cement a close friendship based on mutual respect, acceptance, support, and love.
Joyce excels in describing the natural environment. Her descriptions are rich with sensory detail and immersive. The reader is transported to the rain forest of New Caledonia and walks alongside Margery and Enid as they hack their way up the mountain through dense foliage while mosquitoes nibble away at them. But the novel also has its weaknesses. Although there are moments when the characters are portrayed realistically and show some depth, for the most part, they border on being caricatures. The events are far-fetched; the humor leans toward slapstick. But this plot-driven novel is a quick, easy, and entertaining read if approached with reduced expectations in terms of character depth and plausibility.