Table of Contents

Introduction 9

Chronology 12

Chapter 1 Background on Sue Monk Kidd

1 The Life of Sue Monk Kidd Contemporary Literary Criticism 15

2 Kidd Took Creative Risks in Writing The Secret Life of Bees Monica Dutcher 21

Chapter 2 The Secret Life of Bees and Coming of Age

1 Lily Is More Interested in Her Own Problems than in the Racial Turmoil Around Her Ann-Janine Morey 28

2 The Secret Life of Bees Traces the Spiritual Growth of a Teenage Girl Susan Andersen 32

3 The Black Madonna in The Secret Life of Bees Symbolizes the Mother Within Us Catherine B. Emanuel 40

4 Community Offers Lily a Place for Transformation Amy Lignitz Harken 52

5 The Secret Life of Bees Traces the Growth of Lily's Social Consciousness: The Globe and Mail 63

6 Lily's Development Comes at the Expense of the Black Characters' Individualism Linda Iraggi Larsen 66

7 Honey Child Rosellen Brown 76

8 Solving Mysteries Leads to Spiritual Growth in The Secret Life of Bees Charles Brower 81

Chapter 3 Contemporary Perspectives on Coming of Age

1 The Teenage Brain Is Wired to Tackle New Challenges Nancy Shute 88

2 Society Will Benefit If Young People Assume Responsibility at an Earlier Age Newt Gingrich 96

3 Some Adolescents Are Burdened by Bad Parents Susan B. Miller 101

4 Teenagers Need Positive Parental Role Models Claire Ellicott 110

5 Unresolved Loss in Childhood Can Lead to Issues Later in Life Gordon Carson 115

For Further Discussion 120

For Further Reading 121

Bibliography 122

Index 125