Comparing Book 'A Lovely Bones' By Chapters, Questions And Answers

Lily’s housekeeper Rosaline was a big part in Lily’s growth throughout the her adolescent years. When T. Ray found Lily outside in the garden with her shirt unbuttoned he made her kneel in a pile of Martha White Grits, when she did this her knees got incredibly welted and bruised. Once Rosaleen had seen what he had done she immediately brought it to Lily’s attention how bad she was being treated by T. Ray, “‘Look at you, child. Look what he’s done to you,’” she said (Kidd 25). If not for Rosaline, she probably would have never even been capable of leaving her home at the peach farm in the first place and in turn she probably would have never found the Boatwright sisters in Tiburon, South Carolina (37). If this would not have happened Lily would have been stuck in her miserable life with T. Ray, forever having to kneel in the sharp Martha White Grits, having constantly wilted knees, and being neglected from the love all people need and deserve to feel throughout their

In life in general, every single human being needs a mother, even if they do not share the same skin color, circumstance, or even any biological connection. All an individual needs is an maternal touch from another. Even though Rosaleen acts as a mother when caring and raising Lily, Rosaleen’s rambunctious and somewhat crass personality prevents the motherly bond between Rosaleen and Lily. However, August Boatwright, a beekeeper from South Carolina grants Lily with the “mother’s love” that she had never received before that day. August gave Lily firm guidance when wandering through the darkness of her past, complete understanding and encouragement when faced with challenges, and criticized when needed. Early in the novel, Lily states “You can tell which girls lack mothers by the look of their hair...” (3). Yet, August presents Lily with wisdom rather than brushing Lily’s hair, teaching her about boys and dating, and so forth. “You have to find a mother inside yourself. We all do. Even if we already have a mother, we still have to find this part of ourselves inside” (306). For August, the typical motherly love that she exhibits is the one supplied by the Virgin Mary, the mother of God. August shows Lily the undying love that can exist everywhere but can only be made and seen by the Virgin Mary. “This is the autumn of

Lily starts off stuck living in an unloving, abusive household and decides to free herself from the negative atmosphere that she had been living in her whole life. Lily is perpetually abused by her father. He forces her to kneel on Martha White's, gets exasperated every time she speaks, and yells at her for no reason. Lily is not the only one noticing the terrible treatment, Rosaleen does too. Once after Lily had to kneel on the Martha White's Rosaleen said to her, “Look at you, child. Look what he’s done to you” (Kidd 25). Noticing the unloving treatment Lily gets, Rosaleen knew that their household was demoralizing place for Lily to be in, which is why she didn’t question when Lily when she later runs away. Lily one day realizes she needs to do something about her horrible life at home. While sitting in her room she hears a voice in her

“I took everything out, and, stretching out among the fallen peaches, I rested them across my abdomen.” Lily takes all of her mother belongings and brings them close to her to make it seem like she is in her heart or with her. She misses her and wants her forgiveness for killing her by shooting her. She only wanted to help her. “I hate her.

Lily, a fourteen-year-old white girl, lives alone with her father, a peach farmer, in Sylvan, South Carolina. As the novel opens, she lies in bed, waiting for the bees that live in the walls of her bedroom to emerge and fly around, as they do most nights. T. Ray, her father, is abusive and does not believe her story about the bees. Her nanny and housekeeper, Rosaleen, believes Lily but also thinks Lily is foolish for trying to collect the bees in a jar. Lily recalls her very last memory of her mother, Deborah, who died when Lily was a small child. Lily thinks that she played a horrible part in Deborah’s death. In a flashback, readers learn that T. Ray told Lily that she accidentally shot Deborah while Deborah and T. Ray were fighting one day.

In the novel The Secret Life of Bees by Sue Monk Kidd, the main character, Lily Owens, lives at home with her father, T-Ray, and a field worker, Rosaleen, that is brought in the house after her mother Deborah dies. Rosaleen takes Lily to town with her to vote when she gets arrested and is put in the hospital for mistreating white people. Lily breaks Rosaleen out of the hospital and the two of them run away. The two of them end up in Tiburon, South Carolina, and meet the three lovely Boatwright women, known for beekeeping. The oldest sister, August keeps control of the family, and invites Lily and Rosaleen to stay with them. Throughout their stay, August gives Lily support, teaches her important, life lessons, and gives her opportunities to

Because of this, Lily needs someone to guide her as she is growing up. The only person Lily could talk to about her life, especially personal things, was her Black caregiver, Rosaleen. This was Lily’s first motherly figure besides her own mother. After Lily ventured out to Tiburon, SC, she established strong relationships with August, May, and June Boatwright. These women took Lily in and provide many things for her, but August Boatwright has supported Lily the most since they first met. She helps to guide Lily as another motherly figure in her life. As well as supplying for Lily, the Boatwright sisters introduced The Black Madonna to Lily. After days of learning the importance of The Black Madonna to the sisters, Lily initiates that the Madonna is a mother to her and a mother to

Lily feels guilt for killing her mother at the beginning of the novel. She was always beaten down by T. Ray, getting used to punishment and his scornfulness. She was also very upset that her mother had left her with T. Ray, making her think that her mother never loved her and left because of it. However, as she develops in the story, she changes drastically. When she arrives at the Boatwright’s, she is much like how she was with T. Ray, but as she stays there longer, she starts to gain independence, a stronger self confidence and overall becomes stronger.

In the beginning of the story, Lily was a runaway who firmly believed that she was unlovable, but after many precarious events led her and Rosaleen to the Boatwright Sisters, she was taken by August Boatwright without hesitation. August fed the girl, washed her, kept a roof atop her head, and most importantly, treated the Lily as if she was the elderly woman’s own. And when Lily eventually wanted to know about her mother, August obliged and revealed everything. Following the revelation, Lily broke down and “[August] was like a sponge, absorbing what [Lily] couldn’t hold anymore” (238). Up to this point in the story, Lily has been physically and mentally abused by T. Ray. Also, she felt unlovable, maybe even unfit for love. But with August’s presence and comfort, she was able to learn that she was able to be loved. In that regard, August was being what a mother should be: loving and supportive

As readers first start the novel, the main character, and protagonist, Lily Owens is seen as a determined 14-year-old girl who will stop at nothing to find out more about her mother. After getting into a fight with T. Ray, Lily Owens thinks to herself, “That's when it came to me. What if my mother wasn’t leaving true? What if T. Ray made it up to punish me? … But I had such a moment right then, standing in my own ordinary room. I heard a voice say, Lily Melissa Owens, your jar is open. In a matter of seconds, I knew exactly what I had to do -leave.” (Kidd 41) This quote gives the readers a sneak peek at how determined Lily truly is. She takes the risk of running away from her abusive father and the house she calls home. Once Lily runs away and breaks Rosaleen out of jail, she comes up with a plan as to how they will escape Sylvan. “‘We’re going to Highway Forty and

Lily once was walking with Rosaleen. Three men made comments to Lily about her race. One of the men asked “Where are you going?” and Rosaleen responded “I’m going to register my name so I could vote.” (Kidd 31). Her wit was of much help to Lily in a situation such as that. Lily urged to just keep walking while Rosaleen was determined to put the men in their places. Rosaleen also watched the March on Washington for Jobs and Freedom and exclaimed with excitement for civil rights. Not only did Rosaleen support Lily, but in addition, she supported all of Lily’s community as well. Rosaleen is not related to Lily by blood, but typifies a caring and loving attitude towards another individual.

August: I was a housekeeper for Deborah. I used to take care of her everyday. I've heard about T. Ray from her mother, but I have never seen him in person. Deborah told me all about him. Then when Lily told me that she killed her mother, I couldn’t imagine dealing with that for the rest of her life. I told her that I love her and everyone loves her, just as much as her mother loved her. Her mother loved everyone. I gave Deborah a picture of black Mary a little bit before she died, and that is how Lily found us. She looked through her photo album. That is where Deborah kept all of her things.

When Lily finally decides to run away from T.Ray to Tiburon with Rosaleen, the housemaid, in the movie this act is shown more as her wanting to get away from him and not so much as her being curious about what really is in Tiburon, South Carolina. Also, while at the Boatwrights house Lily did not act in a curious manner, but was mostly doing what she could to blend in so she was accepted, and not kicked out. When T.Ray tells Lily that her mother left her as a child, Lily refuses to believe so. She knows that it was just another punishment he uses to torment her, and only seeks to find the real truth at the very end of the movie. When he tries to take her away from the Boatwrights, she asks him before he leaves, “Did you lie about my mother leaving me.” The quality of Lily’s curiosity is lost in the movie. Lily’s life is represented more as a drama than her being curious and seeking answers about her mother, and the black Madonna. Because the movie lacks the value of curiosity it takes away from what the true story

Instead of relying on another power that is above her, she takes her fate into her own hands and tries to save her own home. This self reliance develops early, and can also be seen much later in her life. When she is twenty-seven, Lily learns that her husband has a secret second family. She leaves him immediately and manages to annul the marriage. Although he had taken all of her money from their joint bank account, she does not go back to her parents in Arizona or try to find another husband to take care of her. Instead, she begins preparing for her future alone. “Since I obviously couldn't count on a man to take care of me, what I needed more than ever was a profession. I needed to get my college education and become a teacher . . . the time flew by, and when both the dispensation and the acceptance letter arrived, I had enough money for a year of college” (p. 90). Instead of wondering what to do and moping about her ex-husband, Lily is practical and knows what she wants to do next. She also mentions that she cannot depend on a husband to take care of her. If she did not have to fend for

Like always, he slapped Lily, knocking on the ground along with a few kicks as he continued to yell at her, instead this time calling her Deborah. As he doesn’t realize it was Lily until she shouted “Daddy” and apologized for leaving him, he had a knife pulled out as he shouted constantly at her. However, when he sees that Lily was in fact not Deborah, a look of embarrassment and pain hit him as it was easily observed to Lily. All along, this was the reason why she was treated so poorly, and it was finally clear to her. He insisted that she go home with him, but August and herself want nothing more than to stay there with him, demanding she doesn’t leave. Soon enough, he gave in as he barged out, started his truck, and slowly drove away. Lily still hoped that he would send her gifts at Christmas time, as she still wanted to have him in her life, seeing that he wasn’t perfect, just like everyone else isn’t. As she has gone through a lot with her father, Lily is excited to start her new life with the Boatwrights-the people she loved so so much and she