Beautifully honest and raw memoir

⭑⭑⭑⭑⭑  Charming and intimate, The Honey Bus chronicled the formative years of Meredith, a 6 year old girl who moved from Rhode Island to her grandparents' house in California with her newly divorced mother and younger brother, Matthew. The 70s and 80s of Meredith's youth reminded me vividly of what was cool and how life was in this simpler time of Gremlin cars, Jordache jeans and colorful eye shadow. To say that Meredith had a rough time of it would be an understatement as the angst of the awkward teens were amplified by her mother, who refused to leave her depressive funk in bed, having no cares for either of her children. Luckily, Meredith's step-grandpa was all the role model she would need as he taught her about bees and many critical life lessons as well.

This is such a beautiful, touching story; it made a big impression on me. The difficulties faced by Meredith and Matthew were not the worst a child could face but certainly not conducive to healthy child rearing either. I felt every squeamish moment Meredith endured and cringed each time she had to venture out in the world with her horribly troubled mother. Grandpa was a real ray of sunshine with each story he shared and all the love he poured into these two foundling children. It wasn't an easy life, by far, but he proved a stabilizing force that would see them through to adulthood and a brighter future.

A really lovely, generously frank story that is well worth a read especially if you, too, grew up during the magically peculiar time of the 70s and 80s.