Final Post

Today I finished reading The Secret Life of Bees by Sue Monk Kidd. As my final blog post in this series, I will be answering another two questions by my teacher.

Question One: choose a character who is starting to change and explain how the change is being made and what purpose it serves. Are the changes the character is making, plausible or realistic (could/would actually happen in real life)? Why/Why not?

I have chosen to write about June, I feel she is an important character in the story because of the role she plays in Lily’s life. June is one of the beekeeping sisters even though she is actually a school teacher. June was to be married at a young age but was left at the altar which hardened her. When Lily and Rosaleen first come to the “pink house” June was severe and disrespectful towards Lily. 

Picture source

“When the door opened, it was not the woman in white but another one wearing red, her hair cut so short it resembled a little gray, curlicue swim cap pulled tight over her scalp. Her face stared at us, suspicious and stern. I noticed she carried a musical bow tucked under her arm like a riding whip. It crossed my mind she might use it on us.”

After August invited Lily and Rosaleen to stay with them June voiced her opinion. June was very unhappy with Lily staying with them, partly because of Lily’s skin colour, but also because they didn’t know Lily. 

“The intake of Junes breath nearly sucked the air from the room. But August−”

“But she’s white, August.”

June continued to be rigid and callous towards Lily and we see that on page 87 when August and June are talking outside. 

     “I don’t see that we owe her anything, June said.”

As the story progresses we see that June has been struggling with things in her own life and after some time she begins to soften towards Lily. 

Picture Source: ©bigstockphoto.com/Grisha Bruev

“August laughed, and I saw the softening come around in Junes eyes, how she was trying not to laugh, but it was like the Dutch boy pulling his finger out of the dike − the minute she softened her eyes, the whole thing collapsed.”

“She let go and sprawled back on the grass in convulsions of laughter. I plopped down next to her and laughed, too. We could not stop. I wasn’t exactly sure of everything we were laughing about – I was just glad we were doing it together.”

As a reader, this brought me so much delight! I had become so emotionally invested in this novel, I started to well-up with tears and the strong reactions caught in my throat. Knowing that now June and Lily could finally be friends. To my great astonishment June doesn’t stop there she takes it one step further when “The Daughters of Mary,” are celebrating “Mary Day.”

“As life would have it, the one to fed me turned out to be June. Opening my mouth, closing my eyes, and waiting for the body of the Mother, I heard June’s whisper brush my ear – I’m sorry for being hard on you when you first got here.”

This passage brought so much warmth to my heart as I was reading about June going through such an amazing change of attitude towards Lily. June started off being cold and stern towards the young white teen but by the end of the book, they became great friends despite their difference in skin colour. It was very important for June to make this transformation as Lily needed her as a friend to help her navigate through life’s challenges. I know that this is very plausible and has happened in real life. Many people can have a relationship start off very much like Lily and June’s did, but they learn to put their differences and prejudice aside in order for their heartfelt connection to form. I have truly enjoyed reading about Lily and June. I have considered myself privileged to be a silent observer as their strong bond has developed and flourished. 

Question Two: Would you recommend this book to another reader? Why/Why not? What kind of person would you recommend it to? What would you tell the person about the book?

I would 100% recommend this book to women everywhere! I have really enjoyed reading it; with all the twists and turns, the intrigue, the storylines, the love, and the loss. It’s amazing how Mrs. Kidd draws you into the story and keeps you wanting for more. Once I sat down with this book, I couldn’t stop turning the pages.

Picture Source

“Set in South Carolina in 1964, The Secret Life of Bees tells the story of Lily Owens, whose life has been shaped around the blurred memory of the afternoon her mother was killed. When Lily's fierce-hearted black "stand-in mother," Rosaleen, insults three of the deepest racists in town, Lily decides to spring them both free. They escape to Tiburon, South Carolina--a town that holds the secret to her mother's past. Taken in by an eccentric trio of black beekeeping sisters, Lily is introduced to their mesmerizing world of bees and honey, and the Black Madonna. This is a remarkable novel about divine female power, a story that women will share and pass on to their daughters for years to come.”

As soon as I read the synopsis from the back cover of the book I knew I needed to read this paperback; to dig in and explore The Secret Life of Bees. I would suggest that women everywhere read this piece of sensational literature. However, I would not recommend this book to children under the age of ten as there is upsetting content which children may not emotionally prepared to intellectually process. You will experience a roller-coaster-ride of emotions when reading this novel. Mrs. Kidd has outdone herself with this work of fiction! 

I wanted to finish off this post with a captivating excerpt that I hope this will encourage others to pick up this riveting manuscript.

Picture Source

“At night I would lie in bed and watch the show, how bees squeezed through the cracks of my bedroom wall and flew circles around the room, making that propeller sound, a high-pitched zzzzzz that hummed along my skin. I watched their wings shining like bits of chrome in the dark and felt the longing build in my chest. The way those bees flew, not even looking for a flower, just flying for the feel of the wind, split my heart down its seam.” 

I hope that you have enjoyed reading my thoughts on The Secret Life of Bees by Sue Monk Kidd.

Cite:

“Pink house” page 67 first paragraph.

Picture of flowers spelling the word June: https://tricklecreeklodge.com/june-special-offer/

“When the door opened, it was not the woman in white but another one wearing red, her hair cut so short it resembled a little gray, curlicue swim cap pulled tight over her scalp. Her face stared at us, suspicious and stern. I noticed she carried a musical bow tucked under her arm like a riding whip. It crossed my mind she might use it on us.” Page 68 paragraph 9

“The intake of Junes breath nearly sucked the air from the room. But August−” page 72 paragraph 6

“But she’s white, August.” Page 87 paragraph 7 

“I don’t see that we owe her anything, June said.” Paged 87 paragraph 10 

Picture of the tree in a field with the sun behind it: https://www.timeanddate.com/astronomy/facts-about-june-solstice.html

 “August laughed, and I saw the softening come around in Junes eyes, how she was trying not to laugh, but it was like the Dutch boy pulling his finger out of the dike − the minute she softened her eyes, the whole thing collapsed.” page 169 paragraphs 4 

“She let go and sprawled back on the grass in convulsions of laughter. I plopped down next to her and laughed, too. We could not stop. I wasn’t exactly sure of everything we were laughing about – I was just glad we were doing it together.” page 169 paragraphs 5 

“The Daughters of Mary” page 106 paragraph 2

“Mary Day” page 220 paragraph 4 

“As life would have it, the one to fed me turned out to be June. Opening my mouth, closing my eyes, and waiting for the body of the Mother, I heard June’s whisper brush my ear – I’m sorry for being hard on you when you first got here.” page 226 paragraph 7 

Picture of the front cover of "The Secret Life of Bees" by Sue Monk Kidd:  https://www.amazon.com/Secret-Life-Bees-Monk-Kidd/dp/0142001740

“Set in South Carolina in 1964, The Secret Life of Bees tells the story of Lily Owens, whose life has been shaped around the blurred memory of the afternoon her mother was killed. When Lily's fierce-hearted black "stand-in mother," Rosaleen, insults three of the deepest racists in town, Lily decides to spring them both free. They escape to Tiburon, South Carolina--a town that holds the secret to her mother's past. Taken in by an eccentric trio of black beekeeping sisters, Lily is introduced to their mesmerizing world of bees and honey, and the Black Madonna. This is a remarkable novel about divine female power, a story that women will share and pass on to their daughters for years to come.” Synopsis from the back cover of The Secret Life of Bees.https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/37435.The_Secret_Life_of_Bees 

Picture of bees crawling out of bee house: http://thetopbarhive.com/bees-bearding-on-a-cool-night/  

“At night I would lie in bed and watch the show, how bees squeezed through the cracks of my bedroom wall and flew circles around the room, making that propeller sound, a high-pitched zzzzzz that hummed along my skin. I watched their wings shining like bits of chrome in the dark and felt the longing build in my chest. The way those bees flew, not even looking for a flower, just flying for the feel of the wind, split my heart down its seam.” Page 1 paragraph 1 

Halfway Post

Welcome back! This is my “Halfway” blog post.  

For the last few weeks, I have been doing a novel study for school. I am reading “The Secret Life of Bees” by Sue Monk Kidd, and today I will answer two questions asked by my teacher.

Question one: Describe a problem faced by the main character. Explain how the main character deals with the problem. Make a personal connection to this (either your own experience or that of someone you know).

Lily is a young white girl who doesn’t know much about the world. She had a horrible father and her mother is no longer with her. Lily is still trying to deal with the loss of her mother with the help of Rosaleen, “Lily’s fierce-hearted black, “stand-in-mother.”

Lily removes Rosaleen from the hospital and runs away with her to safety. After a few days of living with the “black beekeeping sisters,” Lily soon realize she is the odd one out. She discovered this for herself on page 111.

Picture source

“I walked toward black Mary with my hand lifted. But just as I was about to reach her, June stopped playing. She stopped right in the middle of the song, and I was left in the silence with my hand stretched out.

Drawing it back, I looked around me, and it was like seeing everything through a train’s thick window. A blur passed before me. A moving wave of color. I am not one of you, I thought.”

Lily disregarded the issue of her skin colour. She didn’t know how to deal with it so she buried it deep within herself and excused away the incident.

I have experienced this same feeling many times in my life. I have food allergies and because of them, I was never invited to friends' birthday parties. As a child, I began to believe I was too much trouble to have around. Now since I am older it is still a challenge as I feel people are either continuously forgetting about my allergies or they are leaving me out because they don’t want to deal with the trouble of having to provide safe food. 
I also have dyslexia so reading and writing has always been hard for me. I have even lost friends because of this challenge, therefore, I know all too well the feeling that Lily experienced. The painful realization that “I am not one of you.”

Question Two: Write down a passage that appeals to you and describe why? Does it make more of an impact on your understanding of the book or does it make more of a personal impact? What significance does the passage have in the book?

Ron Germundson's "Moon Over the Creek"

“Thanks to the moon, I could see clear down to the creek bottom, all the way to a carpet of pebbles. I picked one up−reddish, round, smooth water heart. I popped it into my mouth, sucking for whatever marrow was inside it. Leaning back on my elbows, I slid down till the water sealed over my head. I held my breath and listened to the scratch of river against my ears, sinking as far as I could into that shimmering, dark world.”

I really enjoy this excerpt and when I am reading this I can envision myself in the cool river; the smell of the fresh water, the feeling of the darkness all around with no light but the moon. I can imagine the sound of the stream as it swiftly flows, not stopping, going right on around anyone and anything in its way. 

I do feel that scene of Lily being in the creek is an important part of the book. I think that at this point in time Lily is still discovering herself and trying to figure out life. In this one moment of being in the stream, her life struggles all fell away and nothing else mattered. She was just living in the moment and enjoying the river.

I know this also had an impact on my thoughts and feelings. I enjoy aquatic activities like swimming, floating and paddling in my kayak or on my paddle board. This image of the creek really spoke to me. In the summer when I am stressed out I will go to the lake. The sounds, smells, and calmness of the water seem to really help put everything into perspective and help me to think while enjoying life. I delight in swimming to the bottom of the lake to look around at all the rocks, except I have never thought to put one in my mouth and suck on it, haha. I do truly appreciate this passage as it reminded me of how much I love water and swimming, and it helped to bring that joy and hope back knowing that summer is not far away.

Thanks for reading I look forward to writing the final blog post in this novel study after I have finished reading the book.

Cite:

“Lily’s fierce-hearted black, “stand-in-mother.” Synopsis from the back cover of The Secret Life of Bees.

“black beekeeping sisters.” Synopsis from the back cover of The Secret Life of Bees.

“I walked toward black Mary with my hand lifted. But just as I was about to reach her, June stopped playing. She stopped right in the middle of the song, and I was left in the silence with my hand stretched out. Drawing it back, I looked around me, and it was like seeing everything through a train’s thick window. A blur passed before me. A moving wave of color. I am not one of you, I thought.” Excerpt from page 111 paragraph 3 and paragraph 4

Duck picture, source http://blog.ebinfoworld.com/?p=1324

“I am not one of you.” Excerpt for page 111 paragraph 4

“Thanks to the moon, I could see clear down to the creek bottom, all the way to a carpet of pebbles. I picked one up−reddish, round, smooth water heart. I popped it into my mouth, sucking for whatever marrow was inside it. Leaning back on my elbows, I slid down till the water sealed over my head. I held my breath and listened to the scratch of river against my ears, sinking as far as I could into that shimmering, dark world.” Excerpt from page 55 paragraph 8 and page 56 paragraph 1

Ron Germundson’s “Moon Over the Creek” http://www.avatarreview.net/AV19/ron-germundson-moon-over-the-creek/