This book is great. I finished it in about 3-4 sittings. You don't want to put it down. I can't wait to see the movie.

This book was so captivating I could not put it down. I experienced a gamet of emotions from feelings of happiness, sadness, guilt, anger, lonliness as well as a sense of belonging. I would highly recommend this book.

This book makes for a great read. 'Secret Life' provokes the reader to reflect on all of the positive changes that America has undergone since the 1960's. Additionally, any woman/little girl who has struggled to find her true identity can relate to Lily's plight. With that being said, however great the movie, I do not believe that the actresses chosen to portray the book's characters match each character's true essence. I am glad that I make it a point to read the book prior to watching the movie adaptation.

For those of us who grew up during the civil rights movement or on the fringe and are now seeing the change The Secret Life of Bees is a clear reminder of where the march begins in a place we can clearly see and feel. Take the chance and go back to that place, feel the feelings and be empowered.

Have added Secret Life of Bees on my "favorite list" and look forward to reading The Mermaid Chair by Ms. Sue Monk Kidd.

Reading the Secret Life of Bees during one of what is undoubtedly one of the most historic elections of my lifetime, most likely most Americans lifetimes was intriguingly nostalgic and retrospective of the changes in our United States that took place during the civil rights movement all the way to present. In the Secret Life of Bees, the racial divide is crudely exposed, but is described in a nurturing fashion of the coming of age story of Lily Owens. The characters are full of hope for their future and the racial divide in the book is bridged momentarily. Now, after the recent election and finishing the book shortly after Nov. 4th it seems the racial divide is once again bridged at least momentarily.

THE INTENSITY OF SOME OF THE SITUATIONS IN THE EARLY CHAPTERS ARE NECESSARY FOR THE STORYLINE. DON'T GIVE UP. IT'S A BEAUTIFUL STORY JUST AS THE LIFE OF THE BEE IS ONE OF GOD'S WONDERS.

Sue doesn't disappoint with heart-felt story about a 14 year old girl named Lilley living in South Carolina. Another great read by this author is The Mermaid Chair. However, do read the book first before going to the movie (although it does hold true to the book)because it is just plain better.

A charming book - well worth reading. Loved the movie, too, which closely follows the book. Both highly recommended

Kudos to Sue Monk! This is a beautiful and heart-warming story of a fourteen year old white girl living on a bee farm in North Carolina. Lilly's adventures as she defines what a real mom is will tug at your heart strings. Ms Monk has drafted an excellent narrative told from the perspective and in the voice of this teenager. You are totally pulled into this story and fall in love with its characters.There is an uplifting, hopeful feeling that's fills the reader at the end. And truly, you will be sad it ended.

One of my favorite novels is THE SECRET LIFE OF BEES. Why? Because author Sue Monk Kidd's writing led me to believe narrator Lilly Owens was a real 14-year-old girl with real 14-year-girls' perceptions and problems. She never let on that an adult wrote the story, which means she's a good writer and trained actress. (I don't know if she has any acting experience, but her writing makes me want to think she does.) I also like it because it reads like a ballet, with its dances performed by the queen bee and her corps, the corps and beekeepers, and the beekeepers and Lilly.

I loved this book! Despite the fact that the likelihood of the story seems far-fetched given the true history of those times, the story is well written and captured my attention fully!

I read the book the same week the movie came out. I always believe books are better at telling stories than movies. I must confess that it wasn't what I expected...at some point I thought the story was dragging. In short, its not one of those "can't-put-it-down" books.

Though the main character, a white southern girl who runs away from home, can be annoying at times, the book overall was very moving. If you like novels based on the South, ones that invoke issues of racism, apathy, have eccentric characters and close with a good ending, I'd highly recommend reading the book. I haven't seen the movie yet and I'm hoping it is as good as this novel was...give it a try.

This was a great story line. I chose to read the book before seeing the movie and I am glad I did!! Excellent, quick read and I recommend this book.

My school library rarely has new arrivals (and most new books are several years old) and most people aren't interested in them ever, other than myself. So when I saw a relatively glossy, new book sitting on the shelf (this was a few years ago, plus the book was a recentish edition), I figured what the heck, looks silly, but I'll read it.

I'm kind of sorry I did. No, jot that. I'm definitely sorry I did, and I don't regret reading most books, even the bad.

"The Secret Life of Bees" is basically the kind of book I hate most. It tries to be meaningful and important, creating this "vivid" world with "strong" central characters, tells an "important", "impacting" story, and in reality, does no such thing. Instead, readers are presented with some of the most bland characters in literature (one point down), a plot that is sloppily put together (rushed, awkward, and rather... stupid), writing that is also bland as well as flatly simplistic, inspiring no one and providing the reader with no pretty images at the very least, and that feeling in the end that I got nothing positive out of this book.

Characters first. Lily, the main character, is not particularly likable, in that she kind of lacks personality. Okay, I can deal with that. But that every character surrounding her is equally flat and bland just means that everyone is sort of... dull. Rosaleen, Lily's nanny, felt pretty stereotypical. As did Lily, Lily's father, T-Ray, the sisters August, June and May, and crush Zach. Almost all the characters sound alike and if it weren't for their names being entirely different, it would be impossible to tell who said what.

Meanwhile, the plot is just... weak. Weak and rushed. See, within days of arriving at her new "destination" after having run away from home, Lily is perfectly accepted, no questions asked. Fairly unbelievable, but okay, we'll let it slide. Wait, hold on, a random semi-important incident? Oh, wait, twenty pages have passed (a day and a half) and everyone's forgotten about it, there's new drama in town. Thanks, but no thanks. That's just impossible to swallow. And the ending? All the threads just tie up so neatly? What about all those things that happened in the "body" of the story? They're so quickly forgotten? That's how it is with this book. "Major" events are dealt with over numerous, drawn-out [simplistic] pages, and are quickly forgotten, ignored, and dealt with.

So the final verdict? The only thing going for this novel is the premise (could have been interesting, but Sue Monk Kidd failed at the execution) and the simplistic writing, which some might translate as "artistic". It's not; it's just annoying. Characters and plot are so watered down, stereotypical and bland that it's impossible to get into the story - assuming there really is one. This book feels like it was written with the intended audience in mind of book clubs discussing the "intriguing topic". Well, fact of the matter is, this book is neither enjoyable nor technically good. By the end it felt like it was trying to be a lot more than it really was. So my deepest apologies to fans - I simply did not like this book. It's not my least favorite book ever, so it gets a 1.5 star rating, but it's far from good.

Don't even bother.

I read this book immediately, as I wanted to do so before seeing the motion picture. It was a very good depiction (to me) of how times were back in the day. I really wanted it be to a little longer and was disappointed when it ended. I saw the picture and urged other who had seen it, to read the book since so many of the details were missing from the picture. I would recommend this book to teenagers.

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

Very Good reading. Saw the movie and then read the book. Movie was good but the book is better.

This has been on my stack of books to read since someone recommended it to me. I hadn't heard anything about the story, so didn't have any pre-conceptions. What a pleasant surprise! Kidd writes beautifully. The story is set in the south, and the jacket notes have comments like "truly original Southern voice", but really, the story is unique and universal. Seen and told through the eyes of a 14-year old girl with a difficult life and a haunting past - she sees the world with a freshness and clarity that is uplifting. Highly recommended!

This is a heart warming story, that I finished in a day! The author does a great job creating the mental images to go along with the story and the characters. I am a Midwest girl, born and raised. Since my first trip as a child down to Georgia, I have been in love with the South. The food, the landscape, the people, the weather! And it is all present here, and written in such a way that you are right smack dab in the middle of it. I was reluctant to read this until the movie came out because it just didn't seem like a story that would really stimulate me. I could not have been more wrong. Please don't make the same mistake I did, and indulge yourself in this delicious story now! Can't wait to see how Hollywood has interpreted this in movie format. Cozy up and enjoy!

This is such a wonderful CD Set....... Awesome Narrator.....draws you right into the story.....you'll love every minute of this collection.........NOT TO BE MISSED!!!!!

I loved the book, and then as a book club we all saw the movie together. The characters were PERFECT!

The book is an easy, comfortable, feel good book. I highly recommend it. If you're more into a thriller, I just wrote and published my first book TAKEN. [...] See it!

The Secret Life of Bee's is an excellent story about a fourteen year old girl finding herself and learning to grow up. It takes place in the south (Tiburon, South Carolina to be exact) when racism was very common in that area. It is a great book for anyone but especially for girls entering their teens. She had to grow up without a mother so she never had that maternal influence or guidance. The most prominent female in her life was her Nanny Rosaleen. Because her father is cold and heatless Rosaleen becomes her only source of love, but people frown on this because Rosaleen is black. When Rosaleen's life is threatened and her father is to much for lily to bare lily makes a decision that will change her life forever. Lily runs away to Tiburon South Carolina because of a picture she found that belonged to her mother with the town written on the back.

I read the book after seeing the movie. The movie was fantastic but the book was even better!

Sure, I know, this book has been out for a while. I saw it on the shelves and felt like I didn't want to be bothered. I never go the way of the popular. However, The Secret Life of Bees is an absolutely wonderful story about compelling people doing compelling things. I was in the middle of reading another novel when I picked this one up at the store on a whim.

Lily, the main character, takes the reader by the hand and into a whirlwind of events that mold her into a young woman. August and her sisters take Lily under their collective wing and give her roots for the first time in her life. They also give her a place to heal old wounds. This story literally made me cry. Everything about Lily -- from falling in love with someone she cannot have to feeling the pain and anguish of knowing her mother ran away and left her -- rings so true to life.

If you only read one book for a long time, pick this one. I'm reading the Mermaid Chair (and finding it good but not as good so far) by the same author. It would be hard to match the quality and pace of The Secret Life of Bees.

This book is a great story of friendship and love; It has become one of my favorites! I recommend this to my friends all the time! Better than the movie (though the movie was good, as well).

What a wonderful book! I can't wait for the movie, but I know it will not be as good. It was written in the voice of a child and was just wonderful. I am adding it to my bookclub list.

I got so absorbed in this story and its characters I couldn't put the book down - for about 3 hours! It's a heartwarming story about family and love that's not too sappy, and Kidd is a great storyteller.

This is my second time reading "The Secret Life of Bees". This time I read it with my siblings. Its an amazing story that you truly fall in love with. I love that Sue Monk Kidd puts qoutes about the bees at the beginning of every chapter. This is definitely a novel you want to have in your collection, because you'll want to read it over and over again. You fall in love with Rosalynn, August, June, and May. You feel sad for Lily who wants a mother figure so bad. I can't wait to see the movie, I'm hoping they stuck pretty close to the book.
I'm happy Secret life of Bees is being read in schools now. It has a lot of themes and history. You won;t be disappointed,Please read!

The Secret Life of Bees is one of the best books I have ever read. It was recommended to my about a year ago by a very close and dear friend. I haven't come to actually start reading it until a week ago but ohh, when I started! I wished I read it sooner. I just finished it 40 minutes from writing this review but I have a feeling it is one of those books that will stay with me forever. The story is beautiful and you can really picture the settings and surroundings. Monk Kidd really tells the story well and you build up all these feelings towards the characters. I was a bit afraid that the story would be too "girly" (think Ya-Ya and Little Women) but Lily's character (the main character) and the way she presents the story keeps it from getting too much and that was a nice surprise. I got the feeling when reading this book that it is a typical girl book so maybe I wouldn't recommend it to my male friends (or at least not without a disclaimer :))... But now I feel like evryone should read it! I have talked about this book to everyone I know while reading it and just lent it to a colleague, hoping that she will like it just as much as I did.

Great book, I enjoyed it very much. More of a chick book but I'm in touch w/ my feminine side.

When I worked at Barnes and Noble, people would come in all the time, wanting to buy "The Secret Life of Bees". It was on the Bestseller list at the store just recently as I can remember...Around April or May of this year. I never understood why, I guess because I've been reading so many romance novels, never bothered to look at anything else. Plus it just didn't interest me, until I was at the movie theater and saw the coming attractions for this book. I said, damn, this movie looks real good. Then they said the title, and I nearly jumped out my chair. SO THAT'S THE REASON WHY EVERYONE KEPT BUYING THIS BOOK. I had to read it. I'm so glad I went to the library to get it. This book is so good and so funny. I hate cause it's taking me a long time to read it. That's because I haven't felt like reading, but I'm going to buy this book so I can add it to my collection of books (even though they are all romance). Lilly cracks me up with the things she says (Dakota Fanning definitly fits the part of Lilly) and Rosaleen, I feel so bad for her, but she has me laughing as well. Actually, they all have their quirks but that's what makes them unique. Sue Monk Kidd did an excellent job with this book. I know now to not really judge a book by it's cover, and there's more to books than romance novels. LOL

My husband and I listened to Secret LOB's while traveling. We listened going and returning but didn't get it finished. We spent the next afternoon relaxing and finishing the cd. We both felt it was one of the best Books on cd. Another book on cd for a really long travel is The White House by Margaret Truman. You can listen, stop, and return to listening weeks after for the trip home. She researched the White house and has many interesting inside stories of the people who lived and visited the White House.

This book was thought provoking, funny, truthful and very touching. I needed to read it slowly so I wouldn't miss any of the details. A great book for a vaction, even if the vacation is in the comfort of your own home. Enjoy!

The Secret Life of Bees is one of those books that is always talked about yet might not be as good as people say it is. You don't really know until you read it yourself. It has reached such a high pedestal in today's literature that it might just be hype. But it is certainly not. This novel was one of the best I have read this year.
Lily Owens, fourteen years old, is growing sick of her home. Conflicted by the memory of the day her mother died, Lily has to also deal with her mean father T.Ray, who routinely makes her kneel on grits. After her nanny Rosaleen ends up in jail, Lily decides it is time to take charge. She busts Rosaleen out and travels to Tiburon, South Carolina. All she has left of her mother is a little picture of the Black Madonna with Tiburon written on the back. Lily and Rosaleen are immediately taken in by three beekeeping sisters who have secrets to give and secrets to keep. Along the way Lily realizes the true meaning of home and family and meets a group of very special women.
This book is wonderful and relatable. As a teenager myself I find Lily very easy to listen to and to care for. The story moved along quickly, but didn't spare any detail. Every heartbreak and triumph committed by the characters was felt substantially. This book is not hype; it is truly a gem. And with the movie coming out, this book will certainly become appreciated and loved by more people all over the world.

I know I am very late to the party when it comes to "The Secret Life of Bees". It was at a second hand store, and was the best of what was available, so I picked it up. The words and images in this novel set in 1964 South Carolina in 1964 were very evocative...when Kidd describes the oppressive heat - I can practically taste that hot, dusty air.

There were sections when Lily reflects on the mother she's lost and the father she never really had that touched my heart. This young girl's voice comes through so strong and clear that sometimes I forgot the loss she'd experienced. And then I would read something like this.

"That night I lay in bed and thought about dying and going to be with my other in paradise. I would meet her saying, "Mother, forgive. Please forgive," and she would kiss my skin till it grew chapped and tell me I was not to blame. She would tell me this for the first ten thousand years."

Anyone who has ever been either a parent or a child (!) couldn't help but be touched by the pain and loneliness behind those words.

Lily is a girl full of pain, hungering for the slightest bit of affection, and fueled by anger. And yet, I didn't get a sense that she wanted anyone to pity her - she just wanted the smallest chance at a normal life, the tiniest sign that someone valued her as a person, could recognize the hurt she felt.

"Did this mean that if I told May about T. Ray's mounds of grits, his dozens of small cruelties, about my killing my mother - that hearing it, she would feel everything I did? I wanted to know what happened when two people felt it. Would it divide the hurt in two, make it lighter to bear, the way feeling someone's joy seemed to double it?"

This book was an interesting mix of racial tension, Southern life, 1960's politics and the mysteries of female relationships. With so many intertwining issues, it was difficult for me to focus on the underlying message, but I did take an image from here, a message from there. And sometimes I just enjoyed the writing.

"The first week at August's was a consolation, a pure relief. The world will give you that once in a while, a brief time-out; the boxing bell rings and you go to your corner, where somebody dabs mercy on your beat-up life."

At other times, I found my cynicism rising - sometimes, (and I understand how ironic this will sound in a story of girl whose mother dies and whose father does not love her) sometimes the events unfolding struck me as "too good to be true". Or more accurately, to coincidental to be believable.

In the end, though, this book has many lovely parts, many small windows into a world and time and life I will never know.

Lily Owens doesn't have much incentive to hang around home. Her father beats her, her mother is dead, and her nanny is jailed and beaten by racists as she registers to vote. Surrounded daily by bees swarming in her honey-filled bedroom wall, she captures some of them to prove to her neglectful father that there is a problem in her room. One day she opens the jar to let the bees fly free, and she feels a voice inside saying, "Lily, your jar is open." Thus begins her adventure. Rescuing Rosaleen, her nanny, from jail, they run away. Following clues from items left behind by her mother, Lily ends up in a little pink house in Tiburton, South Carolina, where she finds out who her mother was, what life is all about, and where true strength and courage lie. She finds friendship, love, support, and some women who are more her mother than her mother had ever been. The recurrent theme of bees and honey lead Lily to appreciate nature and the beauty of simplicity and reality. The characters in this book are flamboyant and unrealistic in many ways but also very endearing. As the book finishes, it is difficult to leave the little pink house.

What a fantastic novel! I am so in love with the story and with the characters that I cannot wait to see the movie on 10.17.08. Sue Monk Kidd is an amazing writer and story teller. When you are reading you will actually feel like you are in the story. I gave the book 4 stars instead of 5 because I wasn't exactly thrilled about the ending, but other than that I LOVED it.

This is such an interesting and fascinating book to listen to. I listened with baited breath. I just might want to read the book myself as well. Lily the main character is so lovable as are all the characters that are brought vividly to life. I so enjoyed the dialogue and the historical references from the 60's. I especially loved the implication of the Black Madonna. Lily's search for who her mother really was and choosing to leave behind abusiveness was so significant in emphasizing a personal transformation. It was a complete surprise that she found her strength in the divine presence as a Black Mary. This was such a magical element in the story . There were a great many gems of wisdom throughout the book and the bee metaphors were brilliant. I thoroughly enjoyed the story told by August to Lily in the story involving Beatrice(Beatrix),a nun who left the convent and then changed her mind years later wanting to return to the convent only to discover Mother Mary had taken her place. This also was skillfully done using Beatrice(Beatrix) a formal version of Bea- again using `bee'...perhaps this was not intentional.

I throughly enjoyed this book it captured my attention and I could not put it down! I can hardly wait to see the movie!

I have to say, I don't always enjoy the books that everyone raves about, but this one turned out to be quite good and well-written. I can see high school english teachers giving this as a summer reading assignment in the future. Hopefully the movie will be just as good.

The Secret Life of Bees had everything: great storyline, amazing characters, heart worming message. The book should be considered a classic and it should be recognized as one of powerful novels. I do believe the novel should be mandatory read for high school English classes because it explores the importance of family and home.

I loved everything about this book. A page-turner with a wonderful spiritual overtone -- nothing hitting you over the head. Great Characters. However, I won't see the movie. Concern about the industry ruining a good thing. And seeing Dakota Fanning in the role? After her last controversial movie! Her parents should insist that she leave the business and become a "regular" teen-ager, whatever that means.

I greatly enjoyed my purchase of Sue Monk Kidd's book "The Secret Life of Bees." The book is well written in an easy to read style. I didn't want to put it down.

Sue Monk Kidd's 14-year-old principal character Lily Owens' quest to unlock the mystery of her deceased mother's past leads her to forge a familial bond with an unlikely family of accomplished black women. The story is bittersweet in that unimaginable cruelties are inflicted upon the young girl by her bitter and emotionally battered father "Bees" is set in the early era of the Civil Right movement. Kidd includes just enough racial tension to make the story believable. General lessons in humanity are poetic as Kidd employs the goings and doings in the complex lives of "simple honey bees."

I read this book because it was required reading for my daughter's 9th grade Honors English class. We often read books together and enjoy doing so. First, I was very put off by the liberal use of foul language in the book - and yes it was mostly spewed by white people. I think the author was very careful in the placement of profanity - T. Ray, Lily, the white bigots and the uncultured Rosaleen. The calendar sisters (black), however, were portrayed as very scholarly and cultured - June is an accomplished classical cellist, August reads "Jane Eyre" and poetry books and had to coach poor Deborah (Lily's mother) in her studies when she was a little girl (for instance, helping her memorize Frost's poem "Stopping by Woods on a Snowy Evening"). How did August and June become so scholarly and cultured living in the south in that era? (By my calculations, Lily's mother was born in 1927, so August was born even earlier). It would have been nice if the author had given us a window into the sister's past to explain this.

The plot had some interesting twists, but just didn't ring true to me. I understand this is a work of fiction, but I think it is intended to be historical fiction (as opposed science fiction or fantasy) and so the characters and situations should ring true. I, as others have pointed out, also disliked the agonizingly prolonged time it took for Lily to finally speak the truth to August. The angst that Lily felt after learning about her mother also seemed overwrought and drawn out as well. It got tiresome to me.

The black madonna cult was at least humorous - weird, but humorous. I probably enjoyed the scenes with that colorful group of characters the best in the book. I laughed out loud reading about the bank turned funeral home where bodies were displayed in the drive by teller window. So, the book did have its moments, but personally, I would rather spend my time re-reading Jane Eyre.

I was afraid this one would be one of those mainstream literary versions of a Lifetime Movie of the Week, but was pleasantly surprised by how readable & interesting it was from cover to cover. Without being schmaltzy, author Kidd manages to tell a complex emotional story with sweet simplicity. While it may occasionally border on tidy storytelling to navigate it way from beginning to end, it's a very pleasurable reading experience.

This is a simple, unpretentious read, yet very pleasant.

1964, rural South Carolina. Many different themes are explored through the voice of Lily, a white 14 year-old with a heavy weight in her heart, the loss of her mother. What's worse, she believes she has accidentally killed her -it all happened when Lily was only 4- and since then all she earnestly wishes for is a forgiveness that never comes. She is brought up by a black nanny/servant, Rosaleen, and her father, a distant, harsh man who does nothing to make Lily feel loved. After a racial episode which gets Rosaleen into jail and hospital, Lily manages to escape with her and they become fugitives. They eventually get to Tiburon, a city that Lily feels has a strong connection with her mother's past.
They end up at the house of three black sisters, August, June and May Boatwright who, after a few reservations, agree for them to stay for a while in exchange of help around the house and with the bees. The sisters are beekeepers and August introduces Lily to the fascinating world of bees. Busy, wonderful, honey-making bees. After a few days, Lily makes the acquaintance of Zach, a black young man who also helps with all the bees-related work and a friendship ensues. Life at the Boatwright's seems a balm for Lily's wounded soul and Rosaleen too, finds the perfect niche and becomes very close to one of the sisters, May. Life seems trouble-free despite their hiding their true identities and with many racial contrasts in the background at the time.

The author digs into multiple concepts, love, race, loss, hate, friendship, forgiveness, self-discovery and acceptance. The narrative is uncomplicated and charming. On the whole, this book did not entirely blow me away (my "true" rating, 3 ½ stars) but it was inspirational, one of those feel-good ones (hence, the 4 stars). And learning more than one bit about bees didn't hurt either, very interesting. Epigraphs from various books about bees and honey-making are quoted at the beginning of each chapter. A nice touch.

I believe that this book is also suitable for readers 14+.

i read this book a few years ago it was an extremly good book i would read again!!!! A+++++++++++