What readers think of The Secret Life of Bees, plus links to write your own review.

What an enjoyable read! I loved the part when Lily examines her piss in the woods. Really showed how we should all get along.

Simplistic, poorly edited, racist.

I did not enjoy this book at all. It was under developed and was drug out. In the middle of the book nothing really happened these parts could have been left out. Although it showed many examples of racism and prejudice it was an overly emotional read. Lily had the maturity of a 6 or 7 year old. Not what you expect from a 14 year old. This was not the Best book I have ever read.

Contrary to much favorable comment, I found this novel one of the worst I have ever read. The story might have meat, but it lacks the sensitivity, and perhaps poetic nuances demanded by the metaphoric, italicized leads into each chapter. My chief criticism is its literary "non-value". It seems to weave back and forth between implied depth and contrivance. What fragments of "wisdom" appear seem stilted. The "grits" torture does indeed seem invented, not real. The characters are unevenly developed. The author's movement toward insight does not succeed.

It's alright for what it is but it aint all that.

I did not like this book at all. Written from the point of view of a l4-year old girl, this novel is well-suited to a high school audience.

This is one of the most over-hyped books that I've read in years. Lily, at times, seems to have the voice of a 10 year old, and not the mature 14 year old that she is supposed to be. Rosaleen is painted as child -with Lily making their important life decisions. The book tries to deliver an important message about the role of African American women in the South, but I think it fails miserably. With one-dimension characters and a contrived storyline, this book reads like a Hallmark card.