It is strange some of the things that bring us together with others in our lives. For Lily of Sue Monk Kidd's The Secret Life of Bees, bees brought her to the family that she never had in the Calendar sisters. With these women, Lily is able to find the maternal nurturing that she has been lacking since her mother died and is able to grow into the young lady that all knew she could turn into in the end. We are also able to look at how she is finally free to interact with other children her age and how she is able to begin entering adolescents.
Through the passages that Lily shares with Zach we are able to see the awkwardness that a young girl goes through when she is dealing with crushes. In one such passage Zach and Lily share a moment in which they both proclaim how much they like each other but because of their skin differences Zach says:
Lily, I like you better than any girl I've ever known, but you have to understand, there are people who would kill boys like me for even looking at girls like you.
It is interesting to see the changes that go through this young girl. Throughout the story she grows and, as a wise person once said to me, it's hard to believe this is being written from a 14 year old's perspective. However the stage that Lily is going through is a stage that all girls and boys go through and it is interesting to see how one girl deals with the changes.
Posted by Tiffany Brattina at May 4, 2005 10:50 PM | TrackBackI understand your point, personally I thought that everyone changes except Lily. She is the one constant throughout the entire book.
Posted by: Chris Parfitt at May 5, 2005 3:11 PMI don't know that I agree with that. She does go through some changes that help her to become a better person. I feel that she has grown more responsible through helping the Calendar sisters, however everyone is entitled to their opinion.
Posted by: Tiffany at May 5, 2005 3:40 PM