The Secret Life of Bees by Sue Monk Kidd

Lily, a teenager living on a peach farm in South Carolina, lost her mother at a tender age and has an abusive father. She was practically brought up by her black housekeeper Rosaleen. When Rosaleen gets into a fierce fight with three men in town one day, Lily decides that they both have had enough and they run away to a little town called Tiburon. There, in Tiburon, they are taken in by three black sisters who are beekeepers when Lily and Rosealeen arrive on their doorstep.

This book explores issues related to racial prejudice and discrimination. While Lily’s connection with the blacks is accepted by the people of Tiburon, it would certainly have invited hostility and disagreement elsewhere, especially where she had come from. Although the town’s apparent readiness to overlook the issue of racism seems relatively unrealistic, the portrayal of the underlying tension and inequalities that existed in the 1960s is very accurate. Racism is vividly described throughout the story. For example, the white men from the town would always add the word “nigger” when referring to Rosaleen. The blacks are also not allowed into the church with the whites.

In the later part of this novel, the love story of Lily and Zach (who is an Afro-American) develops and the issue of her love for Zach is questioned.

Temasek Junior College, 2006. 2 October 2008 http://www.tjc.edu.sg/inspirations/June2006.asp.

***This book is a brand new movie starring Dakota Fanning, Queen Latifah,Alicia Keys and Jennifer Hudson


Discussion Questions:

• Were you surprised to learn that T. Ray used to be different, that once he truly loved Deborah? How do you think Deborah's leaving affected him? Did it shed any light on why T. Ray was so cruel and abusive to Lily?

• Had you ever heard of "kneeling on grits"? What qualities did Lily have that allowed her to survive, endure and eventually thrive, despite T. Ray?

• Who is the queen bee in this story?

• Lily's relationship to her dead mother was complex, ranging from guilt to idealization, to hatred, to acceptance. What happens to a daughter when she discovers her mother once abandoned her? Is Lily right-would people generally rather die than forgive? Was it harder for Lily to forgive her mother or herself?

• Lily grew up without a mother, but in the end she finds a house full of them. Have you ever had a mother figure in your life who wasn't your true mother? Have you ever had to leave home to find home?

• What compelled Rosaleen to spit on the three men's shoes? What does it take for a person to stand up with conviction against injustice? What did you like best about Rosaleen?

• May buit a wailing wall to help her come to terms with the pain she felt. Even though we don't have May's condition, do we also need "rituals" like wailing walls, to help us deal with our grief?

• How would you describe Lily and Zack's relationship? What drew them together? Did you root for them for them to be together?

• Project into the future. Does Lily ever see her father gain? Does she become a beekeeper? A writer? What happens to Rosaleen? What happens to Lily and Zack? Who would Zack be today?