Traveling with Pomegranates: A Mother and Daughter Journey to the Sacred Places of Greece, Turkey, and France [Paperback]

Sue Monk Kidd (Author), Ann Kidd Taylor (Author)

Book Description

Release date: September 7, 2010

The New York Times bestselling memoir of pilgrimage and metamorphosis by the author of The Secret Life of Bees and her daughter.

Sue Monk Kidd has touched the hearts of millions of readers with her beloved novels and acclaimed nonfiction. Now, in this wise and engrossing dual memoir, she and her daughter, Ann, chronicle their travels together through Greece and France at a time when each was on a quest to redefine herself and rediscover each other.

As Sue struggles to enlarge a vision of swarming bees into a novel, and Ann ponders the classic question of what to do with her life, this modern-day Demeter and Persephone explore an array of inspiring figures and sacred sites. They also give voice to that most protean of human connections: the bond of mothers and daughters.

Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly

Mother and daughter reconnect in this warm travelogue of a journey through Greece, Turkey and France. Both women are at crucial junctures in their lives (and both rely heavily on a tired Demeter-Persephone analogy for their relationship): Taylor, 22, is entering adulthood after recently graduating from college, and novelist Kidd is turning 50 and hitting menopause. Kidd mispronounces a number of words; Taylor reads with emotion, but her voice rises into an inappropriate question mark at the end of statements. Both have pleasant Southern accents with slightly gravely notes in their voices. Some listeners might enjoy the immediacy of hearing the authors read; most, however, will prefer the printed version. A Viking hardcover (Reviews, June 22) (Sept.)
Copyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved. --This text refers to the Audio CD edition.

Review

“A touching rapprochement between mother and daughter.”—Kirkus Reviews



“A return trip in 2000 finds both women changed, and a 2008 afterword rounds out this stunning account of inner journeys, separate and intertwined.”—Booklist



“Read this one as a memoir, a travelogue and as a self-renewal book”—Milwaukee Journal Sentinel

--This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

See all Editorial Reviews

Product Details

• Paperback: 304 pages
• Publisher: Penguin Books; Reprint edition (September 7, 2010)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0143117971
• ISBN-13: 978-0143117971
• Product Dimensions: 7.7 x 5.1 x 0.5 inches
• Shipping Weight: 8.5 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 3.5 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (98 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #324,252 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

Sue Monk Kidd's first novel, The Secret Life of Bees, spent more than one hundred weeks on the New York Times bestseller list, has sold nearly six million copies, and was chosen as the 2004 BookSense Paperback Book of the Year and Good Morning America's "Read This!" Book Club pick. It was adapted into an award-winning movie in 2008. Her second novel, The Mermaid Chair, a #1 New York Times bestseller, won the 2005 Quill Book Award for Best General Fiction and was adapted into a television movie. Her novels have been published in more than thirty countries. She is also the author of several acclaimed memoirs and the recipient of many awards, including a Poets & Writers Award. She lives near Charleston, South Carolina.

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

126 of 137 people found the following review helpful

2.0 out of 5 stars Loved "Secret Life of Bees" but couldn't plow through this November 11, 2009

By DuxMom

Format:Hardcover

While I loved "The Secret Life of Bees" first as a novel and then even as a movie, and liked the Mermaid story that followed, this work of non-fiction combining a mother/daughter view is a major disappointment. Normally I like the "different chapter, different speaker" method of writing. Not so, here. The reason that I actually finished "Pomegranates" is that I did enjoy being filled in on some of the background of "Bees." Admittedly, some of the rest of the novel (Black Mary) is interesting from an historical perspective and the relationship of mother/daughter mildly interesting, I found that the two perspectives were self serving. As a woman about to turn 50 in a few months, I thought I would better relate to Sue and learn something meaningful of the changes brought about by menopause. Instead, I found myself bored by what seemed like an endless repetition of complaining and regret. And I have two almost 20 daughters... certainly there's something here that will give me some new insight...And then it dawned on me that Sue was actually helping daughter, Ann, to launch her career through this book! Ann's contribution was a travel dialogue that made me think, "You're kidding! You're that depressed right out of college,and you don't know you're divine purpose in life? How many of us realize that in our early 20's (or ever?) And then, "Eureka!" she wants to be a writer! And write about her travels to Greece? And do we need to know the details of planning a wedding? I was consumed by these details at Ann's age, too, but certainly don't want to read about anyone else's decisions.
I felt ripped off. An earlier opinion said this would be better as a blog. I agree totally. I'm just glad that I was able to get this from my local library and didn't buy it.

60 of 65 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars A wonderful memoir on turningpoints and midlife October 1, 2009

By C. G. La Ferle

Format:Hardcover|Amazon Verified Purchase

Like Sue Monk Kidd, I found myself at a crossroad when I turned 50 and my only child left home for college. Suddenly, I questioned my career direction and wondered where to turn next. But this isn't just a book for blocked writers. Kidd's new memoir speaks to the yearning in every woman who is entering menopause and struggling to redefine her motherhood, or searching for new projects to "birth." Having read all of Kidd's books, including her novels, I am grateful for this deeply personal glimpse into her creative doubts -- and her process.

Additionally, I traveled to the same places in Greece and Turkey, so the book also works as a compelling travel memoir. (In particular, I enjoyed the descriptions of Mary's last home in Turkey.) There's a lot more to this book -- just as there's a lot that goes on during menopause. While it's not a difficult read, this memoir is not exactly "light reading," and will hold most appeal to readers interested in feminist spirituality. I plan to read it again to appreciate its full depth. I'll read anything Sue Monk Kidd writes -- and was delighted to be introduced to the writing of her daughter as well. Highly recommended.

56 of 61 people found the following review helpful

2.0 out of 5 stars Traveling with white gloves November 15, 2009

By Katherine Cameron

Format:Hardcover

This book provides some valuable information about Demeter, Persephone, and the Madonna (including fascinating information about the Black Madonna. ) I had hoped for an equally fascinating dialogue between mother and daughter, but instead I found it a little cloying and self-absorbed. These are women to the manor born, who seem to be able to spend big chunks of their lives traveling, being depressed, crying, lighting candles, writing, and seeing a therapist. To cap it off, the daughter decides to get married under an oak tree on a famous plantation in South Carolina. The gardens, she admits, were built by "100 slaves in 7 days." That's about as political as the book gets. I sense that these two southern women are searching for a black woman (or Madonna) as a rescue figure. This is a tale as old as our country...(See Gone with the Wind etc). Toward the end of the book, Sue (the mother) touches lightly on the world situation. She wants to give back, help out - but all she gives, in the end, is honey on the roots of a tree in Crete...The book is wrapped up in symbolism that seems superficial and dainty... like wearing white gloves to go feed the poor.