Middle of The Secret Life of Bees

As I read more and more of the secret life of bees I begin to enjoy it more. Lily has run away and is now staying with august and working with the bees. Suddenly she feels what it is like to be loved and have a home where she is happy and cared for. At first I was kind of surprised when lily suddenly felt attracted to Zack, Augusts’ black nephew, but then after reading about him I really wasn’t surprised anymore. It seems like the typical thing for the author to do—make the main character fall in love with the wrong person, someone who is not right for them with a love that is forbidden. In the novel lily often repeats how she wishes there were no skin pigments in the world. If everyone were the same then there would be less prejudice, fighting, and angst. I wonder what will happen between Lily and Zack. I do not think that they will be able to become a couple for there is too much controversy. I wonder when Lily will finally get enough courage to tell August the truth about why she is there. Lily is learning a lot about herself and her past from August and her sisters. They are helping her grow into a young woman and become stronger. They are helping her to become someone who can stand up against her father, T. Ray, and discover the truth about her mother’s death.

beginning of The Secret Life of Bees

I am currently reading The Secret Life of Bees by Sue Monk Kidd. I just started it the other day and am not very far in yet, but so far it seems good. The main character Lily Owens seems like a smart, strong girl who has suffered incredible amounts in her past and has been influenced by them. When she was four, her mother died in a tragic accident, Lily feels lost without a mother and is only stuck with a father who doesn't seem to care about her very much. I can emphasize with Lily from the very first page. I have a feeling that the bees, which swarm Lily’s room at night, are symbolism and even though I am not sure yet what they could be, I know they will be important in the book. I wonder what will happen to Lily or if her life will become better over the novel, because right now its not looking too good. I wonder what will happen when Lily’s father, T. Jay, sees the bees that Lily is trying to collect as proof? Will he be angry or loving? I can’t wait to see what will happen next.

The Time Traveler's Wife by Audrey Niffenegger

For independent reading over the summer, I read The Time Traveler's Wife by Audrey Niffenegger. In this book the main character Henry De Tamble is a time traveler which means that at any random time or place during the day, he will be instantly transported to another point in time either in the future or the past. The only problem with this beside the obvious fact that he leaves his present day life and wife Clare, is that when he time travels he cannot bring anything with him, so he arrives naked and in need of clothes and food. 

This often gets him into trouble with the law. Clare first meets Henry when she is six year old and Henry time travels into the meadow by her house. As she grows up he returns often and the soon fall in love. Even though Clare loves Henry with all her heart, it is hard being the wife of a time traveler, who is constantly leaving. Instantly I fell in love with the main character, Henry De Tamble, he is smart and caring. At and early age he watched his mother die in a car crash and I can relate to that because I watched my father die of cancer when I was eight years old. Henry though, is often transported back to the moment of the crash and has to relive it over and over again. The Time Traveler’s Wife is a wonderful book but is also very sad. I would recommend reading the book before seeing the movie because it makes the movie so much better. I would give this book a rating of 9 out of 10. 

Daughter of Fortune by Isabel Allende

This summer I read Daughter of Fortune by Isabel Allende. The book is about how a young women, Eliza Sommers runs away from home to follow her lover to California during the gold rush. It is 1849 in the book and this manipulation is something that one just does not do, it is not proper or acceptable to run away. Eliza runs away with the help of her friend the Chinese doctor Tao Chi'en. Together they go in search of Eliza's lover but soon they realize that California in the midst of the gold rush is not a nice place, it is full of prostitutes and filthy men. After two years of unproductive searching for her lost lover, she finally realizes that she must change her plan. Daughter of Fortune was a good book which i enjoyed, but it was not one of my favorites. The ending left me wondering what the author's goal was and point of the book. Eliza Sommers is a strong character and one who you can relate too. She is constantly questioning her heritage and family and is a relatable character. I would recommend this book to someone who likes to read historical fiction.