Reviews

The Secret Life of Bees by Sue Monk Kidd

sydatwell's review

4.0

A lovely story of loss, feeling lost, and found family. The way the author compared Lily’s life to that of bees was so clever. I couldn’t put it down!

samsullivan220's review against another edition

emotional hopeful inspiring mysterious medium-paced

3.0

tessatumyol's review against another edition

5.0

Author: Sue Monk Kidd
Genre: Fiction/Classics
Rating: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️/5

Coming of age

mrs_tea's review against another edition

4.0

A sweet story about finding who you are. The story of the bees juxtaposes the story of Lily; a hard life but a soulful heart.

cierra_gulb's review against another edition

5.0

Was it a coincidence that this book had a theme of bees and every sentence from Sue Monk Kidd slid off the page like honey?? Her metaphors and imagery were masterful. I want to read it again and again. Just a beautiful story with smiles and tears.

dkatreads's review against another edition

3.0

3.5 Fine story. Important, if at times a bit shallow, discussions of our heritage, what makes us, how we find ourselves new and transformed and liberated from them. I think I wanted a bit more dimension from some of the characters. Some lovely moments on loss and grief, and the Black Mary motif was really interesting. Not sure if it’s just me but felt a little weird with the author writing about Black women’s relationships to racism as a white woman.

ab_pye's review against another edition

adventurous emotional funny hopeful inspiring reflective fast-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

5.0

vandelay's review against another edition

emotional funny hopeful medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.25

lilacwine17's review against another edition

4.0

it was a really interesting story hard to understand at first but once you get into the story your hooked

spatterson12's review against another edition

3.0

Lily is one of the original anti-heroes. I had a hard time with her character, but a 14-year-old who has been carrying the guilt of her mother’s death and spent a decade under the rule of an abusive father — it makes sense why she’s rough around the edges.

Lily is determined to find the truth about her mom, so she runs away with Rosaleen (the only mother figure she’s known) to South Carolina. There they meet three sisters who help Lily find safety and deconstruct her ways of thought while on the lam. All while learning the art of beekeeping.