Tolog Review: The Secret Life of Bees

The Secret Life of Bees
by Sue Monk Kidd
reviewed by Ellis DeJardin

The Secret Life of Bees by Sue Monk Kidd is the kind of novel that can make you cry, laugh, blush, smile, and shiver all at once. In this story, Kidd expresses feminine bravery, courage, love, and care.

The main character, Lily Owens, is a fourteen-year-old white girl living the segregated state of South Carolina. Lily is a well-balanced young girl: independent, caring, spontaneous, intelligent, and sentimental, and displays all these characteristics throughout the storyline of the novel. Lily was only four when her mother died, and from that moment on, she had been living with an abusive father and a sarcastic, African American housekeeper named Rosaleen. This story takes place in the 1960s, so the Southerners are still trying to accept the African Americans as humans, but this process comes with its ups and downs.

Sue Monk Kidd does an amazing job at captivating all senses and emotions of the reader from the first page, until the last sentence. From the beginning, the reader understands that Lily is a tough girl, because she explains her typical day: going to school, selling peaches, and kneeling on grits. Her brave personality becomes highlighted by her audacious actions. When troubled times strike at Lily’s home, her courageous and brave sides really take control of her mind. Through her adventures, Lily meets the Boatrights: August, May, and June. They are the three Boatright sisters who run a family honey business called Black Madonna Honey. Lily and Rosaleen take shelter in the Boatright residence, and is instantly introduced to the world of beekeeping. Lily also meets new people like Zach, a honeybee worker, Neil, June’s lover, and the Daughters of Mary, a religious group of women and one man that were formed through ancestry. Throughout the book, Kidd expresses feminine power and bravery as well. She speaks to the reader that women are capable of doing things they are thought not capable of doing, like owning their own business, starting a religion, and running away from home. But she goes further into detail about women empowerment through the Black Mary and her story of fighting until you can no longer be beaten. Through these new relationships and experiences, Lily discovers the true meaning of love, care, and dependence.