The Secret Life of Bees by Sue Monk Kidd (2003, Paperback, Reprint)

This page turner, The Secret Life of Bees, grabs the reader from page one and holds on real tight. It squeezes at your insides and tugs at your heart.
Sue Monk Kidd has written on of my favorite novels of all time. Her characters are fun, complex and jump off the pages.
Set in South Carolina in 1964, The Secret Life of Bees tells the story of a young Lily Owens. This crisp story evolves around her and her stand-in-mother ,Rosaleen, the trouble they get into and how they must leave town.
Rosaleen insults three racists and with Lily's help she busts out of jail and into the arms of three eccentric black beekeeping sisters, named May, June and August.
Much of Lily's story and the reason she stays with the sisters is centered around her dead mother and her quest for answers. Like many great novels before this one, the reader is taken away into world of the novel. In this case a world of bees, honey and the mysterious Black Madonna.
Lily disappoints on more than one occasion, (I found myself thinking- get over yourself (about Lily)) and then remembered she is a young child who does not understand loss, rejection and fear as much as an adult might.
The book reminds me of vacations as a youth, when you stop your worrying for a few weeks and you explored nature, life and the people who loved you- and who loved you unconditionally.
But as time passes and life goes on- the realities of life and adulthood always return- Often unlike some novels, the ending may not be so sweet and the problems seem worse when you return. This book got me through a tough time in my life and this world of Bees, Honey and Friendship shall always hold a place in my heart.
Two words - solitude and perseverance- we choose how to survive and how to look back at our own history and possibly say, "Thanks for the strength." We say it to God, The black Madonna or to anybody who will listen.

Book: The Secret Life Of Bees
Author: Sue Monk Kidd
Pages:336

"Living on a farm in South Carolina with her cruel, unyielding father, Lily Owens has shaped her entire life around one devastating, blurred memory-the afternoon her mother was killed, when Lily was four. Her only real companion at home has been the fierce, black woman Rosaleen, who acts as her mother.
One day, when Rosaleen insults three of the deepest racists in town, Lily knows it's time to spring them both free. They take off in the only direction Lily can think of, toward a town called Tiburon, South Carolina. Lily found the name of this city on the back of a picture amind the few possessions left by her mother.There they were taken in by an eccentric trio of black beekeeping sisters named May, June, and August. Lily thinks of them as the calendar sisters and enters their mesmerizing secret world of bees and honey. Maternal loss and betrayal. guilt and forgiveness entwine in a story that leads Lily to the single thing her heart longs for most."

"There is nothing perfect," August said from the doorway. "There is only life."

This is a remarkable story about divine female power and the transforming power of love - a story that women will share and pass on to their daughters for years to come. Hope this helps you to decide to get it or not.Thanks for reading! :)

The Secret Life of Bees is an interesting story written by Sue Monk Kidd.

The story revolves around Lily, a 14 year old girl who lives with her father in South Carolina.

One day while strolling through the fields for rotten peaches, Lily stumbles upon a talking bee, who calls herself the Queen Bee, played by famous Andy Griffith Show actress Aunt Bea. The Queen Bee commands Lily to follow her to the bee hive, where other bees such as Bea Arthur and Cecil B. Demille live.

The secret behind the secret life of bees is that the bees are all agents of the CIA. The fly around the world, causing unrest in communist, to allow Republican presidents to declare acts of war in order to take control os vital resources such as oil, strategic airspace, and non-English speaking supermodels. Once controlled, Tea Party members move in and create 3rd world trailer parks, complete with Super Walmarts.

The story unfolds in a brash, sometimes earily quiet fashion, allowing the reader to become deeply involved with the characters in the book. Fine writing, combind with lots of anecdotal sceneric play, bring wonder and a sense of 3D to the book (book does not include 3D glasses).

One of the most amazing parts of the book involve a chapter where Bea Arthur communicates with McKenkie Phillips via psychic telemetry, and discusses why McKenzie decided to come out with her revelation of strange interactions with her father. All this, while Lily listens in, confused as to why this discussion was even included in the story to begin with.

The supporting role played by Johnny Depp as the wise old sheriff, a cameo appearance by Conan O'Brien as the witch, and a guest apearance by the cast of Glee, add whimsical humor and dance fare to the otherwise stoic byline. The ending song, performed by M.C. Hammer, allows the reader to moonwalk and sing along through the last chapter of the saga.

I highly recommend The Secret Life of Bees, not just because my dad bought it for me for a high schol assignment, but because I truly enjoyed writing this review.

Buy it now!

The Secret Life of Bees is a well-written coming-of-age story set in South Carolina during 1964 -- the year the Civil Rights Act was signed by President Lydon B. Johnson.

The main character is a motherless teenage white girl abused by her father, who witnesses racial violence firsthand when she sees her black caregiver beaten for defending her new right to vote. The characters, the time period and the small town setting make the book feel similar to "To Kill a Mockingbird."

I could not put this book down . . . it held my interest completely and I fell in love with the characters. It's one of the best books I've read in a long time.

“The Secret Life of Bees” by Sue Monk Kidd is a coming-of-age novel set in 1964. Life in South Carolina is complicated, confusing, and frightening for the motherless Lily. In one of the novel’s most moving scenes, Lily accompanies her housekeeper, Rosaleen, when she walks proudly into town to register to vote for the first time only to be stopped. What happens on that afternoon causes Lily to question the actions of the adults around her. And to act in a way that changes everything.

The book is richly full of details about the life in the South, beekeeping, and 1964.

I just adored "The Secret Life of Bees." If you are a fan of Elizabeth Berg's fiction or her book "We Are All Welcome Here", then you'll probably love it, too!