Little Bee: A book review of sorts

Last weekend I grabbed a new book as I was headed to the pool (a local apartment complex pool I crash at, don’t judge me). I bought this book a while ago but didn’t start it right away. The pool seemed like the perfect opportunity to begin.

After a trip to the book store, I’m always hesitant to start a new book. There is so much pressure for the book to live up to my expectations. I want it to be good. On the contrary, if the book is as good as I expect, I will have to say goodbye to my daily responsibilities. I will devote every minute, dream, thought and waking moment either diving deeper into the book or lost in my own thoughts about the world the author has designed.

Little Bee did live up to my expectations. My house is evidence to this fact, a tower of dishes so high they teeter on disaster, tumbleweeds of animal fur gathering in the corners, shoes strewn about, the grumbling stomachs of hungry pets and husband, and most noticeable, a butt shaped impression in the corner of the couch.

A reviewer on amazon captured the story better than I could: "Little Bee is a 16-year old refugee from Nigeria who is always looking for a suicidal option for "when the men come". Her character provides a unique and captivating narrative; by page three I cared about her, by page nine I knew she had terrible story to tell me and I dreaded it.”

It was a great book that I enjoyed reading. I was rooting for Little Bee, almost audible telling her to be brave and bold. I was disappointed with Sara’s character, but that may have been by design. While she proves she has a good heart, there are times she is painted as self-involved and immature. I was willing her to do the right thing, even though I wasn’t sure if she did, it would be believable.

As with all engaging books, once they are over I continue to analyze the characters, their story, and the relationship (if any) with my own life.

If you enjoy being enthralled in a story as much as I do, I recommended escaping into this story.


P.S. Somewhere I read that this book was marketed as a comedy with a horrific tragedy. I would strongly disagree, this was not a comedy. It makes me wonder if the marketing team even read the book.