Review of "A Secret Life of Bees" by Sue Monk Kidd

A SECRET LIFE OF BEES ★★★★☆

by Sue Monk Kidd

"If you need something from somebody always give that person a way to hand it to you."

This book is a gem. I read this as a late commemoration for the women's month, and it certainly was a fitting choice. It was very beautifully written too, not so artsy, not too simply: just right for a fourteen-year-old narrator. I can't point out what exactly it is that I like about A Secret Life of Bees. Was it the plot, the characters, or the symbolism? I found the constant appearance of quite endearing, it was as if I could hear the buzzing sound and see the whirring motion myself.

I can't say that I like Lily, sometimes I found her too unpredictable. But then again, I commend Sue Monk Kidd for being able to depict her accurately, based from her age. But certainly, I'd admit that she wasn't the most amazing heroine out there. If there's a character that I like, it must be August, or even more so, the calendar sisters in their entirety. I think I need not elaborate more on why I love those women. 

Perhaps, it was the story itself that got me going. While I was still at the beginning of the novel and still had about more than a hundred pages left to read, I was wondering, what more could happen in the span of those pages? After reaching Tiburon, South Carolina, what interesting thing could take place? The normalcy of the events was beautiful in itself; I was being exposed to a different time and a different culture. It was a wonderful reading experience.

Indeed, right after I read this, I felt so empowered as a young woman.