Rating: 
Summary: "Sweet Honey in the Rock"
Review: This is a wonderful first book, full of interesting characters and experiences--with an added bonus that it introduces us to the fascinating life of bees. It made me want to learn more about the "secret" life of bees. I gave this book only four stars because some (if not all) characters are just too unbelievably good or bad, there is a certain lack of just simple humanity in them. But it's a very charming, entertaining book to read!
Rating:
Summary: I'm Allergic and I Still Liked It!
Review: I have watched this book being raved about on Good Morning America, and I just didn't think it would be my type of book. However, when my book club chose it as a monthly selection, I decided to give it a chance. I'm very glad I did. I was expecting a miserable, sad story filled with heartache and tears. Not at all. The story is, of course, filled with some sorrow, but that's really not the theme of the book. The theme, in my opinion, is that a person can overcome heartache and sadness. Lily lost her mother at a very young age. The mystery of her mother's death has haunted her all her life. As she grown into her teen years, the mystery of her mothers actual life takes center stage. What was her mother like? What did she sound like? Did she love Lily? Did she love Lily's father? The quest to learn more about her mother lead her to small town in the south where she meets three black sisters. August is a beekeeper, June is a music teacher, and May is slighly disturbed. Lily brings her nanny, Rosaleen, along on the journey with her, and together the 5 women make a haphazrd family. Lily's new family teachers her about racism, religion and love. When Lily's past finally catches up with her, the protect her and love her still.
Rating: 
Summary: Very unusual.....
Review: I enjoyed the story of this book, about a girl named Lily living in the South during the '60s. Her quest for finding about her mother leads her to the Boatwight sisters,an eccentric group of ladies, who make her feel wecome, and help her with her search. The story is truly original, and would be a good book to discuss in a group.
Rating: 
Summary: This would have appealed to me when I was 13
Review: I probably would have given this book four stars when I was 13. But taste evolves; as an adult, I wasn't interested. It seemed silly. Here are some examples of what I mean by "silly." This book was told in the first person by a girl or woman who was at least high school age. Yet, the author deliberately made her talk like an 11 year old. As a matter of fact, her grammar was certainly worse than mine was when I was 11. This book was constantly commenting on the poor treatment black people received at that time (the 60s) in the South, yet the child this book was about talked to and about her black nanny/"companion" (an adult) as if she were a child or a dimwit. Although there is nothing wrong with looking up to the Blessed Virgin Mary the way Catholics do, adoration of her is another thing. I just loved all the black women who got together for Mary's feast day, but their constant adoration of Mary made them seem like dimwits, too. The author never explained why Zach was the only black boy to go to a white high school.
Rating: 
Summary: Sweet but Predictable Southern Blend
Review: A friend of mine recently said that it seems many southern writers are trying to write the next To Kill a Mockingbird, but it's just not possible. The Secret Life of Bees fits perfectly into this category. The story is sweet but predictable. I feel that it could have ended 100 pages sooner and been a fine novella with the narrative condensed, the obvious forshadowing and symbols pared down, and the beautiful moments of description illuminated. What struck me most, was how often I was reminded of the work of other Southern writers while reading this novel- there are distinct echoes of not only Mockingbird, but Ellen Foster by Kaye Gibbons, Before Women had Wings by Connie May Fowler, and Mother of Pearl by Melinda Haynes. It felt that The Secret Life of Bees is an amalgamation of characters, events, and themes of all of these novels, but the originals in their separate forms are better. I was ultimately left with the impression that I had just watched a very well produced lifetime special, but a lifetime special nonetheless. I do think that Sue Monk Kidd has the potential to write a wonderful, original novel- her strength is in the nonfictional aspects (facinating details of the beekeeping) and in the resonant descriptive images she is able to create- circling, magical swarms of bees; a wailing wall filled with scribbled notes of anguish; a body pinned underwater by a boulder with hands like cups floating to the surface. These moments of beauty linger in my mind weeks after finishing the novel while the plot and characters quickly slipped away.
Rating:
Summary: A good book to read
Review: while the story is unrealistic and do not in any way reflect the true struggle of african american during the 60's with racism - the book do keep you interested enough to want to know what happened next to Lily. I agree with other readers that this book should be for younger readers then adults.
Rating:
Summary: Exquisite
Review: I'm amazed at the poor reviews I've read on Amazon but not at all suprised that they're greatly in the minority. It just goes to show that individual tastes will win out every time. I heartily agree with the glowing reviews written by the majority who have taken the time to review the book. I read the book when I was visiting and left it behind so my hosts could read it. I just ordered another copy so I can read it again and savor the language. One reviewer here suggested that the book should be read slowly for a variety of reasons. I completely agree. But, for me, reading this book slowly would have been akin to asking me to eat one peanut M&M with a bowlful sitting in front of me! This was one of those books which I HAD to finish in one sitting but which I never wanted to finish. The writing is the best I've seen in years. I tend to read a lot of dry science and historical biographies, so that may be why. But I also tend to dislike mass media novels for the most part because I find the writing so unsatisfying. Not so with The Secret Life of Bees. This time, I intend to savor every phrase!
Rating:
Summary: Nice quick read
Review: There were parts of this book that were really interesting--a young girl living with a mean father, raised by an African American farm worker, escapes the farm by rescuing the "nanny" from jail. They venture into a world where the girl tries to find the history of her deceased mother and enters an unusual world of beekeeping. It's only a matter of time before the old life catches up with the new one and the secrets of the mother's life and death unfold. Some parts aren't terribly believable, but if you are looking for a good story that favors chance, this is a good choice for you.
Rating:
Summary: Generally pleased
Review: The Secret Life of Bees is a charming, quick-summer read tracing the story of runaway Lily Owens and her refuge to the Black Madonna Bee Sisters' home of Tilburn, South Carolina. While the novel was generally captivating, I felt that the narration of Lily was awkward and misplaced at times. As a 14 year-old, Lily often jumps the spectrum from honey-sweet matter-of-fact observations to complex literary metaphores that break the tone of the story telling. I would recommend the novel as a good example of female wisdom, kindness, and strength, yet warn readers not to approach the book with false expectations of the solid, fitting writing of perhaps a "Memoirs of a Geisha" or "God of Small Things."
Rating:
Summary: was expecting much more
Review: If it were possible to be overly predictable and extremely far-fetched at the same time...then life would mimick this storyline. Fortunately for us all, life is usually neither of these two ends of the spectrum. This book is not even one you can "get lost in," as I was stuck questioning the ridiculousness of the plot. I gave it two stars only because I was somehow able to push myself to finish the book.
|
