Little Bee

I was about to say that these were the most laborious two hundred pages that I have ever read, but then, I was unfortunately reminded that I read the Life of Pi. The two can not be compared, Little Bee had some characters that were very human and empathetic and a life lesson buried somewhere in the wondering story line.

So before I get to what I did like, let me get what I didn't like out of the way. For only two hundred pages, the book feels so much longer. It seemed to go on FOREVER and the story just sort of meanders from one character to the next until the very end. As I was reading, I felt like huge gaps of the story were left out, and I was right. It comes together at the end, but for those readers who feel like they need to be "into" a book to continue, you simply may never get there. The story takes too long to develop.

Little Bee was difficult for me to relate to for most of the book. Her life is something that is difficult for me to empathize with, and her constant search for a way to commit suicide simply unfathomable. Still, perhaps if I had endured all that she had, I would feel that same way. I just don't know.

Sarah was also very difficult in some cases to relate to. She loves her husband, she doesn't, and then she loves him again. She asks herself the hard questions but never really answers until the end, where it seems like she rises to the occasion.

There are some moments of humor between Sarah and Batman that I found extremely endearing.

Ok so that said, I loved the character of Batman. Like any child, his view of life is very simple, "Are you a goody or a baddy?" Sometimes I wish it were that easy. I loved the authors point of how, when we are children we want to do the right things, we want to make the world a better place. He asks a question of do we lose that along the way or is it a compromise that we make? I don't know, but it's a question that I am trying to answer in my own life.

I think it will make a good discussion for book club. I'm glad to be moving on. Up next, " Columbine", "Codetalkers", "Each Little Bird that Sings" and the "Postmistress." Not necessarily in that order.