The Secret Life of Bees, Sue Monk

The Secret Life of Bees by Sue Monk
BOOK SUMMARY
This book was a favorite by many of the club members. Discussion revolved around many aspects of the Civil Rights and whether or not we felt the novel was believable of the times. For some of us, we thought it was not; there was no way that a black family, regardless of their business standing in the community, would be harboring a white child for that long. However, some of us thought that since Lilly's mother had been there with August and her sisters that it was not that far-fetched to see another white girl show up. Additionally, when we discuss who we thought was the "Queen Bee," the conversation was very interesting. One person thought that the Black Madonna was the Queen. She was the central figure for the sisters and their culture; the driving force. However, based upon the description of a Queen in the hive, some thought that May was the Queen, and when she died, Lilly took her place. The Queen in a hive is doted on, taken care of beyond all distraction, and when she dies, the hive goes nuts. This seemed to describe how the sisters took care of May and how her death affected them.

Meeting Attendance
Karla
Cheryl
Lori
Diane
Pamela
Tony
​Mel