What is Galveston Reads?

2024 Galveston Reads Selection: The Music of Bees by Eileen Garvin

Three lonely strangers in a rural Oregon town, each working through grief and life’s curveballs, are brought together by happenstance on a local honeybee farm where they find surprising friendship, healing – and maybe even a second chance – just when they least expect it. Forty-four-year-old Alice Holtzman is stuck in a dead-end job, bereft of family, and now reeling from the unexpected death of her husband. Alice has begun having panic attacks whenever she thinks about how her life hasn’t turned out the way she dreamed. Even the beloved honeybees she raises in her spare time aren’t helping her feel better these days. In the grip of a panic attack, she nearly collides with Jake – a troubled, paraplegic teenager with the tallest mohawk in Hood River County – while carrying 120,000 honeybees in the back of her pickup truck. Charmed by Jake’s sincere interest in her bees and seeking to rescue him from his toxic home life, Alice surprises herself by inviting Jake to her farm.

And then there’s Harry, a twenty-four-year-old with debilitating social anxiety who is desperate for work. When he applies to Alice’s ad for part-time farm help, he’s shocked to find himself hired. As an unexpected friendship blossoms among Alice, Jake, and Harry, a nefarious pesticide company moves to town, threatening the local honeybee population and illuminating deep-seated corruption in the community. The unlikely trio must unite for the sake of the bees – and in the process, they just might forge a new future for themselves.

Beautifully moving, warm, and uplifting, The Music of Bees is about the power of friendship, compassion in the face of loss, and finding the courage to start over (at any age) when things don’t turn out the way you expect.

At a glance

Galveston Reads, a popular volunteer-driven “One Community, One Book” program operating under the organizational umbrella of the Rosenberg Library, provides an opportunity for all residents high school age through senior citizens to participate in a unique community-wide discussion by reading and sharing views about the same book.

The Galveston Reads series promotes community involvement in Galveston County with a wide range of events, activities, and thoughtful discussions.

If you cannot attend but would still like to volunteer, contact Ash Welborn, or 409.763.8854 Ext. 173. Meeting attendance is not required to participate.