The Secret Life of Bees cover art

The Secret Life of Bees

 Preview

Audible Standard 30-day free trial

Try Standard free
Select 1 audiobook a month from our entire collection.
Listen to your selected audiobooks as long as you're a member.
Get unlimited access to bingeable podcasts.
Standard auto renews for £5.99 a month after 30 days. Cancel anytime.

The Secret Life of Bees

By: Sue Monk Kidd
Narrated by: Jenna Lamia
Try Standard free

£5.99 a month after 30 days. Cancel anytime.

Buy Now for £12.96

Buy Now for £12.96

About this listen

 An intoxicating debut novel of "one motherless daughter's discovery of...the strange and wonderful places we find love" —The Washington PostSue Monk Kidd's ravishing debut novel has stolen the hearts of reviewers and readers alike with its strong, assured voice. Set in South Carolina in 1964, The Secret Life of Bees tells the story of Lily Owens, whose life has been shaped around the blurred memory of the afternoon her mother was killed. When Lily's fierce-hearted "stand-in mother," Rosaleen, insults three of the town's fiercest racists, Lily decides they should both escape to Tiburon, South Carolina—a town that holds the secret to her mother's past. There they are taken in by an eccentric trio of black beekeeping sisters who introduce Lily to a mesmerizing world of bees, honey, and the Black Madonna who presides over their household. This is a remarkable story about divine female power and the transforming power of love—a story that women will share and pass on to their daughters for years to come. African American Coming of Age Family Life Genre Fiction Historical Fiction Literary Fiction Heartfelt Technology

Critic reviews

"Sue Monk Kidd is an extraordinary storyteller. Beautifully written." Ursula Hegi

"A wonderful novel about mothers and daughters and the transcendent power of love." Connie May fowler

"With imagination as lush and colorful as the American South, a clutch of deliciously eccentric characters and vivid prose, Sue Monk Kidd creates a rich, maternal haven in a harsh world." Christina Schwarz
No reviews yet