 THE
SECRET LIFE OF BEES
Sue Monk Kidd
Set in South Caroline in the mid
60s, this is a remarkable first novel about a young, 14 year-old girl,
Lily Owens, whose blurred memory of her mother centers around the
afternoon her mother was killed; and Rosaleen, a fierce-hearted,
independent black woman who has become her stand-in mom. Their
adventures begin when Lily accompanies Rosaleen to town to register to
vote. The circumstances of this event land Rosaleen in the hospital, in
custody of the town’s racist sheriff. Lily decides to take control of
the situation and plots their escape.
So begins the tale of their journey
to Tiburon, SC where they are befriended and taken in by an odd trio of
black, beekeeping sisters. Lily and Rosaleen learn about the world of
bees, honey and the Black Madonna.
This is a remarkable novel about
divine feminine power, a story that women will share and pass on to
their daughters for years to come.
Penguin Books
ISBN: 0142001740 paper
 THE
DANCE OF THE DISSIDENT DAUGHTER
Sue Monk Kidd
A mid-career realization that she
had lived without “ real inner authority” and with “a fear of
dissension, confrontation, backlash, a fear of not pleasing, not living
up to sanctioned models of femininity” produced in Sue Monk Kidd a new
mindset that made her journey of self discovery possible. Kidd shares
her pilgrimage to capture her feminine soul and to live authentically
from that soul. The reader follows Kidd’s path from the comfort of her
Southern Baptist roots, away from patriarchal, fundamentalist Christian
religious systems to alternative religious traditions that speak to her
newly discovered Soul Self. Kidd’s journey is a mirror for many who take
up the path of discovering the authentic feminine Soul Self.
HarperSanFrancisco
ISBN: 006064589X paper
 THE
MONK DOWNSTAIRS
Tim Farrington
Meet Rebecca Martin, a single mother
with an apartment to rent, who describes herself –“I’m 38 years old, and
I’ve got a daughter learning to read, and a job I don’t quite like. I’ve
got a mortgage. I’m making my middle-aged peace with network television
and tomorrow is just another day I’ve got to get through. I don’t need
the violin music”. Enter her new tenant – Michael Christopher – a warm,
funny, attractive man who is entering the mundane world after 28 years
in a monastery and in the midst of his own “dark night of the soul”.
Rebecca’s daughter, Mary Martha immediately hits it off with Michael
Christopher. What ensues is a delightful romantic comedy and a tale of
deep spiritual renewal. It is a love story – a tender exploration in
which individual journeys interweave, and of the ways we are changed by
the opening of the heart.
HarperSanFrancisco
ISBN: 0062517864 paper
 ALL
OVER CREATION
Ruth Ozeki
Set in Liberty Falls, Idaho, heart
of the potato-farming industry, this intriguing novel brings the reader
right into the conflicts of modern day farming and agribusiness. Yumi
Fuller, the main character returns to Liberty Falls after an absence of
25 years. The prodigal daughter returns to confront her dying father, a
mother who has all of the symptoms of Alzheimer’s, and her best friend,
only to find herself at the center of a new drama. All Over Creation
is a celebratory tale of the beauty of seeds and growing things and the
capacity for renewal that resides within us all.
Penguin Books
ISBN: 0142003891 paper |
