In her first novel,
Sue Monk Kidd delivers an exceptionally well-written story about
a fourteen year old girl’s coming of age. In The Secret
Life of Bees, we meet a teenage girl suffering from neglect,
and searching for love. As Lily begins her journey, the reader
also begins a sojourn that teaches about human nature and relationships.
Lily Owen’s mother was accidentally shot and killed when
Lily was four. As the novel opens, we learn it was Lily herself
who allegedly pulled the trigger. Unconvinced that she could have
done such a thing, and believing her abusive father might just
be lying to her, Lily runs away from home with her African-American
nanny to search for her mother. They follow the only clue Lily
has about her mother which is a picture of a Black Madonna with
the words, “Tiburon, South Carolina” written on the
back. Together Lily and her nanny find the source of this picture
– the home of three African-American sisters who run a business
selling a brand of honey called Black Madonna. These women take
Lily and her nanny in and while living with them, Lily learns
the truth about her mother, the meaning and importance of love,
lessons on racism in America, and even more about herself.
This novel
offers the reader so much about life in the South of the 1960s
when the civil rights movement was strengthening. It also offers
a great deal about what it means to love and be loved. The book’s
themes are wide-ranging and all are handled deeply with tremendous
sensitivity. The author writes beautifully. It is a pleasure to
become immersed in her flowing, descriptive style. The book makes
you feel good about life.
Some readers might find the novel a bit too slowly paced. While
reading one wants to know exactly what happened in Lily’s
past and it takes the entire novel to answer that question. Additionally,
the author spends a lot of time on the Black Madonna image and
connected rituals that some local women in Tiburon practice. Some
of this was excessive and readers may find it a bit boring.
Overall, this book deserves four stars. The Secret Life of
Bees is simply an excellent novel that makes the reader more
conscious of the beauty of our relationships and our language.
Lily’s growth and realizations inspire us to deepen our
connections with others. And readers might also appreciate bees
and honey in ways they never considered before.
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