Review * Giveaway
Once I Was a Beehive by Carol Lynch Williams
Book description:
Charming, clever, and heart-warming. Carol Lynch Williams' novelization of the motion picture Once I Was a Beehive is sure to be a family favorite.
Sixteen-year-old Lane Speer spends her family vacations camping in the mountains, taking the memories for granted until she loses her father to an unexpected bout with cancer. One year later, as Lane is still reeling from her father's death, her mother remarries a guy who Lane hardly knows. To top it off, he's a Mormon. Worst of all, while her mom and new stepdad are on their honeymoon, they arrange to have her stay with her Mormon step-aunt who takes her to a bible-themed girls camp with a bunch of Mormon girls. Confronted with memories of camping with her family, Lane tries to find peace with her new surroundings as she deals with the death of her father.
Review:
It's not often that you hear about a book being made from a movie, but that is just what Carolyn Lynch Williams has done with her new novel, Once I Was a Beehive. The movie (with the same title) came out three years ago, and it's one that my kids and I enjoy. It is full of stereotypes that are quite exaggerated, but it also has touching moments that tug at your heartstrings. It's a clean, family friendly movie.
Williams did a great job of making this movie into a novel. While the book follows the movie quite well, it is totally from Lane's point of view and it makes for a more serious story. I really enjoyed being privy to her thoughts and feelings about everything from her father passing away, to her mother remarrying, to joining her new cousin's church group at a summer camp. There are definitely some additions that the movie didn't have, and they added a lot to learning more about Lane.
While I think this novel would appeal to those who liked the movie, I think it is written in such a way that it would appeal to a broader audience. The cheesiness that is quite common in the movie is much less in the novel. The focus is more on Lane and the experiences that help her find some peace after losing her father (and her mother in a way).
As far as content there is one swearword and an instance of teenage drinking.
Tour Schedule:
Dec 10: The Bibliophile Files
Dec 11: Katie’s Clean Book Collection
Dec 12: My Book a Day
Dec 13: Literary Time Out
Dec 14: Min Reads and ReviewsAbout the Author:
Carol Lynch Williams, who grew up in Florida and now lives in Utah, is an award-winning novelist with seven children of her own, including six daughters. She has an MFA in writing for children and young adults from Vermont College, and won the prestigious PEN/Phyllis Naylor Working Writer Fellowship. The Chosen One was named one of the ALA’s Quick Picks for Reluctant Young Adult Readers and Best Books for Young Adult Readers; it won the Whitney and the Association of Mormon Letters awards for the best young adult novel of the year; and was featured on numerous lists of recommended YA fiction. Carol’s other novels include Glimpse, Miles From Ordinary, The Haven, Waiting, Signed, Skye Harper, and the Just in Time series.
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Author: Carol Lynch Williams
Publisher: Mirror Press
Published: November 2018
ISBN: 1947152548
Source: I received an ecopy from the tour host in exchange for an honest review.
Purchase: Amazon
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