The Secret Life of Bees-Sue Monk Kidd

This book was so good. It touched me in ways no other book ever has. This book was full of great developed characters. I related to Lily in more than one way. This book made me laugh out loud, cry, and think all at the same time.

Lily is 14. When she was young she remembers the day that her mother was "cleaning the closet" and was shot. She remembers that she was the one who shot at her. She was left with her abusive, non-loving father. She always felt that her mother loved her. One day when her father (to punish her so she thought) told her that her mother was leaving her and didn't want her Lily snapped. She broke her African American nanny out of the hostpital/jail and they took off.

They went to the Pink house, that they found through a picture that Lily found of her mothers, and met the beekeeping sisters: August, the oldest; June, and May. Their sister April had killed herself. May felt that she had to hold the weight of everyone elses problems on her shoulders and often went into crying fits until she went out to her wall and wrote out her problems, until one day it was just to much for her and she killed herself.

During her time there Lily met Zack. The one man who she can't be with, but who she builds a relationship with. Lily and the sisters develop a "family" even though she is the only white person there. Lily also finds out that her mother was there and stayed there and did in fact leave her and was in fact coming back to get her when she died. Lily felt betrayed.

This book has so many lessons in it. To me this book was about showing that you can find love anywhere, it doesn't have to be your actual family. When I was a child my mother left me and was not a part of my life, she still isn't. While my father was not abusive or anything like Lily's, in fact he was the best dad, I still know how Lily felt when she found out that this mom she idolized was not in fact that person.

Also being one half of a biracial couple I related to Lily on behalf of the race issue. I know that in this day in age is not frowned upon for a white girl and African American man to be together it is still hard sometimes. You really do still go through the same emotions.

I also really related to May in the aspect of burdening myself with other's problems. I am working on that more and more and seeing how hard it was on May it made me think just how much stress I go through that isn't my own.

This book will be with me forever I am sure. I want to see the movie, but I don't want it to ruin the book for me either.