Secret Life of Bees

By: Sue Monk Kidd

Genre: Historical Fiction/Literary Fiction

Pages: 336

Published: 2001

Told In: First Person

 “Movie” Rating: PG

(Leaning toward the PG-13 side)

Compare to:

Cold Sassy Tree, Olive Ann Burns

To Kill a Mockingbird, Harper Lee

The Help, Kathryn Stockett

In a nutshell:

Set in the South during the 1960s, Lily’s life is shaped around the blurry memory of her mother’s death. After her black “stand-in-mother” gets into trouble, the two of them run away and stay with 3 bee keeping sisters where Lily learns about herself, life, and her mother.

What you may enjoy:

Eloquently written. The story is insightful for the time period and very expressive. Nothing feels forced, but the plot flows naturally and seems believable.

What you may NOT enjoy:

This is very much a “coming of age,” “sisterhood” kind of book. If that’s not your thing, you won’t like this. Some people find the religious practices of the woman a little wacky.

Warnings:

Violence and Disturbing Images:

Woman shot and killed (mentioned several times); man shoves girl; man shakes wife violently; woman beaten; woman hit in the head; woman kills herself, her body weighed down in a river described; man slaps girl; boy throws bottle at a man

Sex and Nudity:

Women sit naked in a creek; girl lusts for boy while examining her naked body; man kisses woman; boy kisses girl

Language and Profanity:

Damn (or forms of it) 20xs; Hell 12xs; Ass (or forms of it) 9xs; God 5xs; Jesus Christ 7xs; Shit (or forms of it) 15xs; Bitch 4xs; Nigger 6xs

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