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The Secret Life of Bees Review

Total questions: 25

Worksheet time: 16mins

Name
Class
Date
1.
What is the setting of the story?
a)
The southern U.S. in the 1970s
b)
The southern U.S. in the 1960s
c)
The western U.S. in the 1960s
d)
The eastern U.S. in the 1960s
2.
Which event was the STRONGEST reason for Lily to run away from home?
a)
Rosaleen's arrest 
b)
T. Ray forcing her to kneel on grits
c)
T. Ray telling her that her mother left her. 
d)
Rosaleen getting beaten
3.
What is the punishment T. Ray is referring to when he threatens Lily with "the Martha Whites?"
a)
He makes her eat Martha White cereal and he knows she hates it.
b)
He makes her kneel on uncooked grits which is very painful.
c)
Martha White is a mean cranky neighbor and he makes Lily clean her house for her.
d)
He makes Lily weed Mrs. White's garden.
4.
How did August know Lily's mother, Deborah?
a)
She took care of Deborah when she was a child.
b)
She worked for T. Ray and Deborah before Deborah died.
c)
They went to college together.
d)
She was Deborah's school teacher.
5.
What reason did August give Lily for why Deborah did what she did.
a)
Deborah was depressed.
b)
Deborah was crazy.
c)
T. Ray wouldn't let her take Lily.
d)
Deborah was sick.
6.
When did Deborah get killed?
a)
When she came back to get Lily.
b)
When she told T. Ray she was leaving him.
c)
When T. Ray learned she had filed for divorce.
7.
How did May find out about what had happened to Zach after the sisters decided not to tell her.
a)
She answered the telephone when Zach's mother called.
b)
She overheard her sisters talking.
c)
Lily told her.
d)
She heard it on the news.
8.
What did August suggest naming Rosaleen?
a)
July
b)
September
c)
March
d)
January
9.
Why didn't August marry the man she loved?
a)
She loved her freedom more.
b)
He cheated on her.
c)
He didn't love her.
d)
He died.
10.
What song does May sing when she gets upset?
a)
“R-E-S-P-E-C-T”
b)
“Happy Birthday”
c)
“Oh! Susanna!”
d)
“Blueberry Hill”
11.
Which two characters in the book spend time in jail behind bars?
a)
Rosaleen and August
b)
Rosaleen and Zach
c)
Zach and T. Ray
d)
Lily and T. Ray
12.
Where did Lily’s mother get the idea to use marshmallows and graham crackers to lure roaches out of the house?
a)
Good Housekeeping magazine
b)
May Boatright
c)
television
13.
What advice does May give her sisters in the suicide note?
a)
She tells June to marry Neil.
b)
She tells them it’s time to live their lives.
c)
She tells August to go back to teaching
d)
She tells the sisters to take care of Lily.
14.

"In my mind she looked like Eleanor Roosevelt" (Kidd 51).

a)

imagery

b)

metaphor

c)

allusion

d)

personification

15.

"...and glided past T.Ray's room in silence, sliding my arms and legs like a skater on ice" (Kidd 22).

a)

simile

b)

personification

c)

allusion

d)

imagery

16.
Why doesn’t Lily touch the heart of the black Mary the first time she reaches out for it?
a)
She faints
b)
She changes her mind
c)
Someone else cuts in front of her
d)
She was told not to touch it
17.
Who first tells Lily about Deborah staying in the honey house?
a)
August
b)
May
c)
June 
d)
Rosaleen
18.
What event pushes May over the edge and causes her to take her own life?
a)
Four little angels dead in Birmingham.
b)
Three civil rights workers murdered.
c)
June refusing to marry Neil.
d)
Zach being arrested.
19.
How old is Rosaleen?
a)
50
b)
55
c)
60
d)
She isn't sure
20.
What profession does Zach plan to pursue?
a)
Professional football player
b)
Writer
c)
Lawyer
d)
Doctor
21.
Why did Deborah marry T. Ray if she doesn’t truly love him?
a)
He had money, and she was poor.
b)
Her parents made her.
c)
She was pregnant.
d)
She was blackmailed.
22.

Which of the following is a major conflict in the novel?

a)

Lily vs. August

b)

Lily Vs. Herself

c)

June vs. Neil

d)

Boatwright sisters vs. Society

23.

Which of the following contribute to Lily's struggle to understand herself?

a)

She has a boyfriend back home.

b)

Her teachers keep telling her she will amount to nothing.

c)

She wants to protest against the injustice of society, but doesn't know how.

d)

At times she feels lonely and worthless.

24.

How does Lily's experience living with the sisters contribute to a person vs. society conflict?

a)

Lily sees first-hand the discrimination African Americans faced.

b)

Lily learns how to legally split from her father.

c)

The sisters learn how to avoid racism and prejudice.

d)

Lily discovers her identity is not linked to her mother's identity.

25.

How do the references to bees contribute to the plot of the novel?

a)

They add a person v. nature element to the story.

b)

They mirror the communities within the novel.

c)

August teaches Lily and Zach life lessons through treatment of the bees.

d)

The symbolize the anger that Lily has for everyone around her.