The Book “the Secret Life of Bees”

The Book “the Secret Life of Bees”

The Secret Life of Bees

The book “The Secret Life of Bees” takes place in the year 1964 in the areas of South Carolina. During this time the civil rights movement and racial tension were taking place.

The main character in this book is Lily Melissa Owens. Lily is a white, 14y/o girl. Who has a black housekeeper named Rosaleen, Lives alone with her father other than Rosaleen being there, her mother died 10 years before the current setting, and ever since her mom passed away life has been miserable because of her father.

The other characters in this book are:

Rosaleen who became the housekeeper for the Owens family after Deborah Owens died. She is a large figured black woman who isn’t sure of her age. Rosaleen has been like a mother to Lily, but Lily’s perspective of black people is that they are all not highly educated or educated at all but that changes throughout the book.

T. Ray Owens is Lily’s father and since her mother died he has been very cruel to her. T. Ray owns a peach orchard and stand and makes Lily sell peaches for him. As most children would be, Lily is curious about her mother but T. Ray will not tell her anything except for that it is her fault her mother is dead because even though she was just a young child and it was an accident, she shot her. T. Ray doesn’t tell her as gently though.

Deborah Owens is Lily’s mother, she died when Lily was 4 y/o from a gun incident.

Mrs. Henry was Lily’s teacher who made Lily believe that she was too smart to go to beauty school and that she could write books if she wanted too. I believe that Mrs. Henry is the support for Lily that Lily doesn’t receive at home.

August Boatwright is a beekeeper who lives in a well known bright pink house in Tiburon, South Carolina. August keeps bees to make her famous Black Madonna honey. August herself is black and is a totally different opinion of what Lily thought about black people. During...

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