And yet another copy of The SEcret Life of Bees... what are the book gods telling me?

I read this when it first came out and really liked it.

From the Publisher
Living on a peach farm in South Carolina with her harsh, unyielding father, Lily Owens has shaped her entire life around one devastating, blurred memory - the afternoon her mother was killed, when Lily was four. Since then, her only real companion has been the fierce-hearted, and sometimes just fierce, black woman Rosaleen, who acts as her "stand-in mother."

When Rosaleen insults three of the deepest racists in town, Lily knows it's time to spring them both free. They take off in the only direction Lily can think of, toward a town called Tiburon, South Carolina - a name she found on the back of a picture amid the few possessions left by her mother.

There they are taken in by an eccentric trio of black beekeeping sisters named May, June, and August. Lily thinks of them as the calendar sisters and enters their mesmerizing secret world of bees and honey, and of the Black Madonna who presides over this household of strong, wise women. Maternal loss and betrayal, guilt and forgiveness entwine in a story that leads Lily to the single thing her heart longs for most.

RELEASE NOTES:

I think this may wander a bit with FutureCat...

To the finder of this book:
Hello and congratulations! You have not only found yourself a good book, but a whole community of booklovers dedicated to sharing books with each other and the world at large. I hope you'll stick around a bit and get to know BookCrossing --maybe even make a journal entry on this book. You may choose to remain anonymous or to join (its free!) And if you do choose to join, I hope you'll consider using me, bookczuk, as your referring member. Feel free to read and keep this book, or to pass it on to a friend or even set it out "in the wild" for someone else to find like you did. If you do choose to join and journal, then you can watch the book as it travels- You'll be alerted by email each time someone makes another journal entry. It's all confidential (you're known only by your screen name and no one is ever given your e-mail address), free, and spam-free. Happy reading!

PS And if you find yourself liking BookCrossing, Charleston has an active group of BookCrossers who meet monthly (second Sunday of the month) at various spots in the Tri-county area. Come join us! For more information, see our yahoo group here! Be on the lookout for other books left in the "Wild"!

Grabbed at the meetup with the Charleston bookcrossers and the wonderful bookczuk.

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A great book, made more so by the fact that it's set somewhere I've been!

Actually, it was kind of scary, especially when I realised it was only set in the 1960s, not decades earlier like I'd thought - frightening to think that within my lifetime people actually thought and behaved like this, and that their racism was not only accepted but condoned by those in authority. And presumably there are still plenty among the older generation who still think the same way - gives me a completely different view of South Carolina :-(

But once I'd got over my shock at the background, there was a wonderful story of women gathering strength from each other to make a difference, and to fight back in their own small way against a hostile world.

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CONTROLLED RELEASE NOTES:

Given to another bookcrosser at tonight's meetup.

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Brought home from the meetup two nights ago. It looks like something I will read and release.

Hi Bookczuk. Thanks for sending Futurecat back safe and sound and sleepy.

Great story, very interesting to read about a house full of women, seeing as I am a minority of one female in a family of five.

RELEASE NOTES:

Given to a beekeeper's wife.