Critical Praise

"It's as if Kidd loaded up a take-home plate with treats, and you said 'Oh, I couldn't,' and then scarfed it down in the car on the way home."

——Entertainment Weekly

"A truly original Southern voice."

——Anita Shreve

"I am amazed that this moving, original, and accomplished book is a first novel. It is wonderfully written, powerful, poignant, and humorous, and deliciously eccentric. Do read it."

——Joanna Trollope

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

——Connie May Fowler

"The chapters...dance on the edges of 'Magical Realism,' that blend of the fabulous and the ordinary that can invest a tale with a sense of wonderment, as is the case here."

——Richmond Times-Dispatch

"Kidd has written a triumphant coming-of-age novel that speaks to the universal need for love"

——New Orleans Times-Picayune

""The stunning metaphors and realistic characters are so poignant they will bring tears to your eyes."

——Library Journal

"Inspiring. Sue Monk Kidd is a direct literary descendant of Carson McCullers."

——The Baltimore Sun

"Fully imagined...the core of this story is Lily's search for a mother, and she finds one in a place she never expected."

——The New York Times Book Review

"This is the story of a young girl's journey toward healing, and of the intrinsic sacredness of living in the world. Simply wonderful."

——Anne Rivers Siddons

"A moving first novel...Lily is an authentic and winning character and her story is compellingly  told. The bees presage her journey toward self-acceptance, faith and freedom that is at the heart of this novel."

——USA Today