Book Review: The Little Bee by Nicola Killen

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The Little Bee  by Nicola Killen  is a children's picture book about a girl name Ollie who follows a bee to a magical, secret garden. But, the next day, the beautiful garden was gone, and the little girl misses her new friends. What will she do? This beautiful book has an expected publication date of May 5, 2026. I'd like to thank NetGalley, Simon and Schuster Children's Publishing, and Beach Lane Books for approving my request for a digital Advanced Readers Copy (ARC) of The Little Bee . I received a copy for free in exchange for my honest review. Nicola Killen wrote such a beautifully worded story that I found myself immersed in the story, and I'm not even the target audience. It's a charming tale that should encourage children to explore nature and make them want to plant their own secret garden.  Equally beautiful were the illustrations. I found myself taking the time to actually look a the pictures as I read. It's a great story to read   at bedtime  with ch...
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Book Review: Happiness Falls by Angie Kim

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Book Club Pick Happiness Falls by Angie Kim
Happiness Falls by Angie Kim is a story about a bi-racial Korean-American family whose patriarch goes missing.  Told from twenty year old Mia's perspective, she's not initially concerned when her younger brother Eugene comes home without their father.  As minutes and hours tick away, the entire family finally realizes is something most be horribly wrong for the father and husband not to be home yet.

This novel was selected by my book club for our June 2024 discussion.  I hadn't heard of this book or author before, so I wasn't sure what to expect, but I enjoy a good mystery and the synopsis intrigued me. "Meh" is my overall thought of Happiness Falls because I didn't particularly like the main character, Mia.  She seemed awfully self absorbed and unobservant, especially when it came to her younger brother, Eugene.  

Eugene is non-speaking and was diagnosed by doctors to being autistic and having a rare disease called Angelman Disease.  There is a huge twist with Eugene, and it shows that no one was actually that observant when it came to the youngest member of the family.  It actually irritated me how everyone treated Eugene like he was stupid and didn't understand anything.  With that being said, the author did a great job of teaching me some things that I didn't know about when it comes to programs for people with special needs.

The story seemed to be more focused on Eugene's story rather than the father missing.  The two are interconnected, but it just seemed like the story went in a different direction than what I anticipated. That's perfectly fine but not exactly what I was expecting or wanting in a book at that time.  On top of that, the story seemed semi-autobiographical.  I also wasn't liking that it was set during the shutdown of the world due to the coronavirus. It's just a little too soon for me.

I just didn't connect with any of the characters or the plot with maybe the exception of Eugene because everyone seemed to underestimate him.  Someone else might absolutely love Happiness Falls by Angie Kim, but unfortunately, I wasn't one of those people.  I didn't dislike the book, but I didn't love it either.  Three out of five stars.

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