Little Bee
By Chris Cleave
Simon and Schuster February 2010
271 pages
From my shelves
I usually write my own descriptions of books instead of using the one from the publisher. But in this case, it's best to go into this book not knowing too much. Here's what is written on the back of Little Bee:
We don't want to tell you what happens in this book.
It is a truly special story and we don't want to spoil it.
Nevertheless, you need to know enough to buy it, so we will just say this:
This is the story of two women. Their lives collide one fateful day, and one of them has to make a terrible choice, the kind of choice we hope you never have to face. Two years later, they meet again - the story starts there....
Once you have read it, you'll want to tell your friends about it. When you do, please don't tell them what happens. The magic is in how the story unfolds.
So now I'm going to try to review a book without telling you much about it. The main characters of this story are the title's Little Bee and Sarah. The two women met on a beach in Nigeria and the things that happened there radically changed their lives. But Little Bee begins two years later, when Little Bee arrives at Sarah's front door. This gives author Chris Cleave the ability to move forwards and backwards in time, filling in the gaps as each woman learns what has happened in the other's life.
This book is a master class in the slow revealing of characters and events. We read through the first few chapters and think we know a few things about the characters in this story. But with each chapter, we learn new things and our perceptions are radically altered. In spite of their many failings and often selfish decisions, the reader comes to care for Little Bee, Sarah, and her young son who wants to be addressed only as Batman. For a story that isn't a thriller, this book had my heart in my throat more times than any book I can remember.
Little Bee is not an easy book to read, but it is one that will change you. The characters are dealing with war, a broken immigration system, depression, and floundering relationships. The story becomes a clarion call to the characters and to the reader to hold each other up through tough times, to put other's needs ahead of our own, and to search for hope in the darkest, most terrifying places.
This book is a master class in the slow revealing of characters and events. We read through the first few chapters and think we know a few things about the characters in this story. But with each chapter, we learn new things and our perceptions are radically altered. In spite of their many failings and often selfish decisions, the reader comes to care for Little Bee, Sarah, and her young son who wants to be addressed only as Batman. For a story that isn't a thriller, this book had my heart in my throat more times than any book I can remember.
Little Bee is not an easy book to read, but it is one that will change you. The characters are dealing with war, a broken immigration system, depression, and floundering relationships. The story becomes a clarion call to the characters and to the reader to hold each other up through tough times, to put other's needs ahead of our own, and to search for hope in the darkest, most terrifying places.
