Characters
Which Calendar sister struggles with depression?
May
What do the Boatwright sisters' names have in common?
They are all named after a month of the year.
Why does Lily run away from home?
To escape T. Ray
The novel occurs during what important and tumultuous time in history?
The Civil Rights Movement
What is the wailing wall?
A stone wall that May built. She goes there when she feels sad.
Which sister is in charge of beekeeping and the honey business?
August Boatwright
What holiday do the sisters and their friends celebrate together?
Mary Day
Why does Rosaleen get arrested?
She stole fans from the church and poured snuff juice on a white man's shoes.
What do bees and beekeeping symbolize in the story?
Community
What is Rosaleen trying to do when she gets arrested?
Register to vote.
Why doesn't June want to marry Neil?
She is afraid of commitment because of a previous broken engagement.
What is the name of the church group that meets at the Pink House?
The Daughters of Mary
How does Lily decide to go to Tiburon, South Carolina?
The name of the city is written on the back of her mother's Black Madonna picture.
What is the name of the Boatwrights' Black Madonna?
Our Lady in Chains
What event do Lily and Rosaleen watch on TV together?
President Lyndon B. Johnson signing the Civil Rights Act of 1964
Who does Lily meet inside the honey house?
Zach
Why did August paint the house pink?
Because it made her sister, May, happy.
Who killed Deborah Owens?
Her daughter, Lily
What is the significance of the whale pin that Lily wears?
T. Ray gave it to Deborah for her 22nd birthday.
What happens that leads to May's death?
Zach is arrested.
What does T. Ray do at the end of the book?
He calls Lily by her mother's name, Deborah
How does Lily find out that her mother has been to the Pink House?
She sees May luring roaches out of the house with marshmallows and graham crackers, like her mother used to do
How does T. Ray find Lily?
She calls him from a lawyer's office and he traces the call.
Lily has been searching for something throughout the story and she finds it at the Pink House. What is it?
A mother figure.
What does Zach give to Lily?
A notebook to write in. (In the movie, he also gives her his dog tag.)