11/10/2025
Miss Benson’s Beetle by Rachel Joyce
If you haven’t yet read Miss Benson’s Beetle, drop everything and get it. The unlikely heroine, Margery Benson, strikes out to pursue her outrageous dream of discovering the “golden beetle”, after getting sacked from her teaching position for stealing a co-worker’s boots! On the run from the police, she hires an assistant – bleach-blond, garishly dressed, Enid Pretty – to accompany her to New Caledonia in search of the beetle. The two women begin a comedic journey, with tons of bug-hunting equipment, a potentially unscrupulous past, the police, and a former WWII POW stalker with PTSD and beriberi. All the craziness comes to a head in the wilds of New Caledonia.
There are scenes where I just laughed out loud. At the same time, the comedy is tempered by the exploration of the themes of worthiness, success, courage and the real meaning of friendship. Don’t miss this one! I think I’m going to read it again!
THEBOOKREPORT Miss Benson’s Beetle
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Posted: January 19, 2026 by J Flaugher
11/10/2025
Miss Benson’s Beetle by Rachel Joyce
If you haven’t yet read Miss Benson’s Beetle, drop everything and get it. The unlikely heroine, Margery Benson, strikes out to pursue her outrageous dream of discovering the “golden beetle”, after getting sacked from her teaching position for stealing a co-worker’s boots! On the run from the police, she hires an assistant – bleach-blond, garishly dressed, Enid Pretty – to accompany her to New Caledonia in search of the beetle. The two women begin a comedic journey, with tons of bug-hunting equipment, a potentially unscrupulous past, the police, and a former WWII POW stalker with PTSD and beriberi. All the craziness comes to a head in the wilds of New Caledonia.
There are scenes where I just laughed out loud. At the same time, the comedy is tempered by the exploration of the themes of worthiness, success, courage and the real meaning of friendship. Don’t miss this one! I think I’m going to read it again!
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