Mini-review: The Secret Life of Bees

Deeply spiritual and profoundly moving tale of a young white woman growing up in a household of black ladies in the southern states immediately after black suffrage is introduced.  I have never had a faith, or really felt the need for one, but here the process of its emergence and redemptive power is richly described.  Reading The Secret Life of Bees as I did during one of the hotter days in the UK, the heat almost comes across as another character as indeed do the bees themselves - you absolutely feel every vibration of their wings.  It's not all deep and meaningful though, there are wonderfully funny moments and characters in this and more than an element of Joanne Harris - fairy tale like playfulness -  and Harper Lee - how it captures the south at a time of change - about the whole endeavour.

Lastly, I loved the device of quotes from non-fiction bee books at the beginning of each chapter as an act of foreshadowing.