En-Titled Women Trivia Quiz

Answer: Sue Monk Kidd

"The Secret Life of Bees" was written by Sue Monk Kidd and originally published in 2001. Set in South Carolina in 1964, the story revolves around 14-year-old Lily Melissa Owens who lives with an abusive father and a maid named Rosaleen. Lily and Rosaleen run off in search of a black Virgin Mary, a picture Lily's mother had owned.

They wind up at the home of the Boatwright sisters, August, May and June (who are black and make honey), where Lily learns about a terrible secret from her past. Among Sue Monk Kidd's other novels are: "The Invention of Wings" and "The Mermaid Chair".

Answer: Kathryn Stockett

Adapted from Kathryn Stockett's 2009 novel, "The Help" was made into a poignant film in 2011. The book is set in Mississippi in the 1960s as a rich, Southern white woman returns from college with dreams of becoming a writer. She chooses as her subject matter the black women who have spent their lives taking care of wealthy white families.

At first, the maids are skeptical and refuse to come forward until one, Aibileen, risks it, and then the others begin to talk. What they relate is often shocking and has consequences. Kathryn Stockett was born in Mississippi and "The Help" is her debut novel.

Answer: Sara Gruen

Sara Gruen takes us back to the Depression era with her 2006 novel "Water for Elephants". The protagonist is Jacob Jankowski who is training to become a veterinarian. He winds up on a train which houses a traveling circus and is hired to take care of the animals.

There is the requisite triangle of Jacob, Marlena, the equestrian star, and Marlena's husband, August. Oh, and then there is also Rosie, the elephant and "Great Gray Hope" for the fate of the show. Sara Gruen's other novels include "At Water's Edge", "Ape House" and "Riding Lessons".

Answer: Alice Sebold

The author, Alice Sebold, takes a horrifying situation and somehow manages to make it not only tolerable, but uplifting. "The Lovely Bones" is the story of 14-year-old Susie Salmon who takes the usual shortcut home from school when she meets her 36-year-old neighbor George.

He manages to persuade Susie to come have a look at his underground den...SPOILER...(*he rapes her, kills her, dismembers her body and dumps the remains in a sinkhole. I told you it was horrifying! The rest of the novel is Susie looking down from Heaven, watching her family and friends, and coming to terms with her own death.*) Sebold has also written "Lucky" in 1999 and "The Almost Moon" in 2007.

Answer: Amy Tan

"The Joy Luck Club", Amy Tan's 1989 book, is a wonderful look at four Chinese-American immigrant families living in San Francisco in the 1950s. They start a club at the First Chinese Baptist Church where they eat snacks and play mahjong for money. Tan cleverly intersperses elements of the game with stories about the lives of the families of these women and their daughters.

She explores the relationships between the mothers and the daughters, i.e., the tensions, the bonds and the love. Among Amy Tan's other works are "The Kitchen God's Wife", "Saving Fish from Drowning" and "The Moon Lady".

Answer: Rebecca Wells

One of the novels in Rebecca Wells' 'Ya-Ya' series, "Divine Secrets of the Ya-Ya Sisterhood" was published in 1996. The story follows four Louisiana women from their childhood friendships through their senior years. Vivi, Necie, Teensy and Caro formed a sisterhood, a bond that was able to get them through all the trials of life.

But can they help repair the rift between Vivi and her daughter Sidda? The other novels in the series are "Little Altars Everywhere", "Ya-Yas in Bloom" and the final book "The Crowning Glory of Calla Lily Ponder".

Answer: Jodi Picoult

The premise of "My Sister's Keeper" (2004) by Jodi Picoult is an unusual one. It seems that Anna was conceived to be a bone marrow donor for her older sister Kate who has leukemia. In her short life, Anna has undergone countless medical procedures in order to prolong her sister's life.

At 13 years of age, Anna is expected to donate a kidney to Kate. It is then that Anna sues her parents for 'medical emancipation' so that she can make her own decisions. The court rules in her favor but...SPOILER...(* as her lawyer is driving her home, the car is hit by a truck. Anna winds up brain-dead and becomes an organ donor after all*). Picoult's other novels include "Nineteen Minutes" and "House Rules".

Answer: Barbara Kingsolver

The Prices, a missionary family, are at the center of "The Poisonwood Bible", written by Barbara Kingsolver and published in 1998. In 1959 they decide to move from the state of Georgia (in the United States) to the Belgian Congo. The family includes the father Nathan, the mother Orleanna, and their four daughters, Rachel, Leah, Adah and Ruth May.

The family encounters culture shock as they realize how different their upbringing is from that of the natives. In addition, they must deal with the political turmoil which exists in the Belgian Congo in the 1960s. Kingsolver's other novels include "The Bean Trees" and "Animal, Vegetable, Miracle".

Answer: Lois Lowry

Lois Lowry's 1993 book, "The Giver", is a dystopian novel. Seeking to provide a utopian community, the society has developed a plan called "Sameness", which has resulted in eradicating emotional depth. But the society also requires someone to store the memories before the "Sameness" was instituted, in order to draw upon the wisdom of history to help in the decision-making process.

A 12 year old boy named Jonas is chosen to inherit this position. But the knowledge makes Jonas question whether order, structure and equality are worth giving up individuality and a sense of self.

Answer: Audrey Niffenegger

The debut novel of Audrey Niffenegger, "The Time Traveler's Wife" was published in 2003. Another novel with an unusual premise, the story revolves around Henry De Tamble, a Chicago librarian with an unusual genetic disease which causes him to drift back and forth in time. Part "Slaughter-house Five", part "Quantum Leap", this is actually a love story. On one of Henry's journeys he meets Claire with whom he falls in love.

They marry but the problems in their relationship are exacerbated by the fact that he's away a lot (which is not within his control) and they are continually out of sync. Niffenegger's other novels include "Raven Girl" and "The Night Bookmobile".