New book coming by 'Secret Life of Bees' author

[June 12, 2013]  NEW YORK (AP) -- The author of "The Secret Life of Bees" has a novel coming next year, her first since 2005.

Viking announced Tuesday that Sue Monk Kidd's "The Invention of Wings" is scheduled for release Jan. 7. Kidd's novel will follow the parallel lives of urban slave Hetty "Handful" Grimke and the girl for whom she serves as a handmaid, Sarah Grimke, a real-life historical figure who grew up to become a feminist and abolitionist.

The novel is set in Charleston, S.C., in the 19th century. It begins when Sarah is 11 and Hetty, an invented character, is 10.

"The Secret Life of Bees," published in 2002, has sold more than 6 million copies. Kidd's second novel, "The Mermaid Chair," was a best-seller published in 2005.

[Associated Press]

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