Book Review: The Secret Life of Bees by: Sue Monk Kidd

Tags

Book, Book Blog, Book Blogger, Book Review, books, review, Sue Monk Kidd, The Secret Life of Bees

Initial Thoughts: By now, most people have either seen the movie adaptation or read the book. It is one of those books that readers say “oh yeah, I read that a long time ago.” There is something about The Secret Life of Bees that contains a book club vibe to it. If you’ve read this book as part of a book club, let me know. Also, if you’re in a book club, I am super jealous as the only book clubs around my area are for seniors.

Knowing can be a curse on a person’s life. I’d traded in a pack of lies for a pack of truth, and I didn’t know which one was heavier. Which one took the most strength to carry around? It was a ridiculous question, though, because once you know the truth, you can’t ever go back and pick up your suitcase of lies. Heavier or not, the truth is yours now.

The Secret Life of Bees by: Sue Monk Kidd

Summary

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 black “stand-in mother,” Rosaleen, insults three of the deepest racists in town, Lily decides to spring them both free. They escape to Tiburon, South Carolina–a town that holds the secret to her mother’s past. Taken in by an eccentric trio of black beekeeping sisters, Lily is introduced to their mesmerizing world of bees and honey, and the Black Madonna. This is a remarkable novel about divine female power, a story women will share and pass on to their daughters for years to come.

The Review

So, I ended up watching the movie adaptation long before I read the book. Actually, it was in watching the movie that I ended up wanting to read the book.

When she was young, Lily Owens’ mother died after a tragic incident. Now, at fourteen, she lives with her abusive father T. Ray and her housekeeper Rosaleen. When Rosaleen gets in trouble with three racists and is thrown in jail, Lily decides to break Rosaleen out of jail and escape to Tiburton, South Carolina after finding the name etched on a statue of Mary. In Tiburton, Lily and Rosaleen meet the Boatwrights – three unmarried sisters who have a honey business. As Lily gets to know the sisters, secrets from her mother’s past begin to be revealed.

Advertisement

Book Review: The Fourth Century (Le quatrième siècle) by: Édouard Glissant

Tags

Édouard Glissant, Book Blog, Book Blogger, Book Review, books, Le quatrième siècle, review, The Fourth Century

Initial Thoughts: In my last year of university, I had to take a random course on Franco-Caribbean literature to fulfil my French requirements. I didn’t know anything about Franco-Caribbean literature. Absolutely nothing. I went in like a fish out of water, and I came out a little less ignorant. I would like to read more by Franco-Caribbean authors in the future.

Summary

The Fourth Century tells of the quest by young Mathieu Béluse to discover the lost history of his country, Martinique. Aware that the officially recorded version he learned in school omits and distorts, he turns to a quimboiseur named Papa Longoué. This old man of the forest, a healer, seer, and storyteller, knows the oral tradition and its relation to the powers of the land and the forces of nature. He tells of the love-hate relationship between the Longoué and Béluse families, whose ancestors were brought as slaves to Martinique. Upon arrival, Longoué immediately escaped and went to live in the hills as a maroon. Béluse remained in slavery. The intense relationship that had formed between the two men in Africa continued and came to encompass the relations between their masters, or, in the case of Longoué, his would-be master, and their descendants. The Fourth Century closes the gap between the families as Papa Longoué, last of his line, conveys the history to Mathieu Béluse, who becomes his heir.

The Review

I had a hard time getting into this one. The style of writing was a little intimidating at first, and I became confused by the structure of the narrative. The Fourth Century or Le Quatrième siècle as it is known in French, is the story of two families, The Longoué family and the Béluse family through generations of slavery in the Martinique. The story begins generations after the abolition of slavery where Mathieu Béluse asks Papa Longoué the story if their origins. As Papa Longoué begins his narrative, generations begin to blur in this tapestry of history spanning four centuries. For the Longoué family, the first Longoué decides to become a maroon (a slave who escaped the plantation) and live on the outskirts of society. Meanwhile, for the Béluse family, the first Béluse ends up becoming a house slave. Through the interactions of the Béluse family with the Longoué, the history of the Martinique and the abolition of slavery is revealed.

Book Review: Turtles All the Way Down by: John Green

Tags

Book Blog, Book Blogger, Book Review, books, John Green, review, Turtles All the Way Down

No, it’s not, Holmesy. You pick your endings, and your beginnings. You get to pick the frame, you know? Maybe you don’t choose what’s in the picture, but you decide the frame.” – Turtles All the Way Down by: John Green

Initial Thoughts: The only other John Green book I have read before I decided to read Turtles All the Way Down is The Fault in Our Stars. The Fault in Our Stars absolutely crushed me and left me sobbing for a long time. Some people like books that will give them a good cry… I don’t. That might be the reason why I haven’t read many John Green books. But I decided to give John Green another shot. I just hoped Turtles All the Way Down wouldn’t make me cry.

Summary

It all begins with a fugitive billionaire and the promise of a cash reward. Turtles All the Way Down is about lifelong friendship, the intimacy of an unexpected reunion, Star Wars fan fiction, and tuatara. But at its heart is Aza Holmes, a young woman navigating daily existence within the ever-tightening spiral of her own thoughts.

In his long-awaited return, John Green shares Aza’s story with shattering, unflinching clarity.

The Review

Sometimes Aza Holmes has thought spirals. Her thoughts begin to go on a loop that she cannot control, and she finds herself worried about catching C. diff, a bacterium that affects the colon. For as long as she can remember, Aza has struggled with keeping her OCD (obsessive compulsive disorder) and anxiety under control. Luckily, she has the support of her best friend Daisy and a mission to find the father of her childhood friend (who just so happens to be a billionaire) to keep her negative thoughts at bay.

Turtles All the Way Down is both a realistic and unrealistic portrait of the struggles of mental illness. It is unrealistic in the way that half of the plot is devoted to Daisy and Aza searching for the billionaire father of Aza’s childhood friend, Davis. But, that component of the plot is necessary, otherwise the story might be pretty bleak. The subplot allows the reader a breath of air before tackling the heavy subject matter.

Book Review: Fallen Angel by: Heather Terrell

Tags

Book, Book Blog, Book Review, books, Fallen Angel, Heather Terrell, review, Young adult

I watched my curtains billow in the early autumn wind that wafted through my opened bedroom window. The night beckoned to me. And I answered its call” – Fallen Angel, Heather Terrell

Initial Thoughts: This book has been on my to-read list for seven years. Yes, you have read correctly, seven years!

Summary

Ellie was never particularly good at talking to boys—or anyone other than her best friend and fellow outcast, Ruth. Then she met Michael.

Michael is handsome, charming, sweet. And totally into Ellie. It’s no wonder she is instantly drawn to him. But Michael has a secret. And he knows Ellie is hiding something, too. They’ve both discovered they have powers beyond their imagining. Powers that are otherworldly.

Ellie and Michael are determined to uncover what they are, and how they got this way… together. But the truth has repercussions neither could have imagined. Soon they find themselves center stage in an ancient conflict that threatens to destroy everything they love. And it is no longer clear whether Ellie and Michael will choose the same side.

The Review

When I first put this book on my to-read list, I was still a teenager in high school. The books that used to appeal to me back then don’t appeal to me in the same way anymore. And yet, I figured that I would give this book a try. After all, it has been on my to-read list for seven years!
Elspeth “Ellie” Faneuil has grown up accompanying her parents on trips to impoverished countries around the world. Their goal is to make a difference in the lives of others. Despite all of her travelling, Ellie remains very unpopular at school and only has one friend, Ruth. It is now the start of a new school year and there’s a cute guy, Michael, who has just moved to Ellie’s town. Michael claims he knows Ellie from one of her summers in travelling in Guatemala, but Ellie cannot remember him at all. Also, there is something very strange about Michael that Ellie just can’t put her finger on.
Okay, so when I read the description and some

Book Review: Shantytown Kid (Le gone du Chaâba) by: Azouz Begag

Tags

Azouz Begag, Book Blog, Book Blogger, Book Review, books, Le gone du Chaaba, review, Shantytown Kid

Initial Thoughts: When I was in university, I was introduced to the works of Azouz Begag. My French professor is a huge fan of Begag. In the two books by Begag I have read, he writes about the immigrant’s perspective in the cultural context of France through a sociological perspective. Shantytown Kid is an autobiographical novel of the childhood of Azouz Begag who grew up to become delegate minister for equal opportunities of France.

Summary

One day an illiterate Algerian immigrant in Lyon gave his son, Azouz Begag, a book, saying, “This book is a bird.” How Begag took flight on the wings of learning is one of the stories that unfolds in this captivating autobiographical novel of growing up amid the multicultural complexities of contemporary France.

Determined to leave behind the poverty of his shantytown life, Begag works to become a star pupil at the local primary school—earning the jealousy and rejection of his Arab playmates even as he contends with the anti-Arab racism of his French peers. Begag’s moving and often comical account of negotiating a path between the competing cultural spaces encountered during his childhood is a compelling tale of coming of age in a world of ethnic and racial tensions. A story for all ages, it is also very much of the moment, offering unique insights into the reweaving of the social fabric of France in response to growing ethnic diversity

The Review

In Shanytown Kid (Le gone du Chaâba) many Algerian families have found themselves living in Shantytown, a place of extreme poverty with no electricity and unhygienic conditions in Lyon, France. In spite of the rough conditions of the Shantytown, young Azouz is determined to succeed in school. Faced with racism from his fellow French classmates as well as from his Arab friends, Azouz must use his intelligence to persevere.
In this autobiographical novel, Azouz Begag introduces a world that is rarely spoken of, the world of immigrants who have established themselves in another country. In spite of his insistence of being born in France, Azouz is always seen by his classmates as an other, or a threat.