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Carol Yao, B block, 5/02/09

The Patron Saint of Butterflies was a 292 page novel that was written by Cecilia Calante. The main

characters of the story are Honey, and Agnes. The whole book was written in a switch off format which

is when Honey and Agnes each write a chapter on what happened in there own thoughts. The story

shows a relationship between two girls that slowly grow apart holding tight onto what they have left in

their friendship. The characters are Honey, her dad which is Mr. Little, Mrs. Little, Nana Pete, Lillian,

Benny, and the owners of Mount Blessing, Mother Veronica and Father Emmanuel. In this story, the

characters are in a conflict; Mother Veronica and Father Emmanuel were the ones that were against

Lillian, Nana Pete, Honey, and Agnes. There were against each other because Father Emmanuel was

punishing the people that lived on Mount Blessing.

The story started like this, Agnes was looking for Honey

because she got into trouble. Honey was punished by Emmanuel

because she kissed a boy, on her back; Veronica had carved the

word “harlot”. Soon, Nana Pete (Agnes and Benny’s grandmother)

found out about the regulation room where people were being

punished at. Nana Pete decides to leave after she found out, when

Benny had his finger slammed in the door. Someone had called thepolice, but because Emmanuel knew he was going to get into

trouble if the police come, so he decides to sew it on himself 

clumsily. Nana Pete takes him to the hospital where they had to

undo everything that Emmanuel had done. Right after Benny had

woken up, they escape from Mount blessing where Agnes really

doesn’t want to because she wants to become a saint, but Honey

dreads to escape that place from the day her was born. Honey had

to say goodbye to Winky, the person that Honey owns a Butterfly

garden with. Honey also left a note about if Agnes ever goes back,

Honey made Winky call the cops.

They travel across from Connecticut all the way to Texas. On the way, Agnes faced a lot of things

that were considered a sin, like eating stuff that are red, watching T.V. and listening to the radio which

was all considered sins but Honey did all of them even when she knew it was against the rules on Mount

Blessing. Agnes struggles to be with Honey because of their differences, especially when they arrive to

the destination and meet a girl named Lillian. Actually, Lillian is Honey’s mother that had left her when

she was only a baby, the story of her mother was complicated. She was wonderful at the violin when she

had went to Mount Blessing, so she instantly was accepted into Emmanuel’s inner group which usually

take years to do. But at that time she was already pregnant but the people in the inner circle knew

nothing about it, when they did, Honey was already born into this world, so they made Lillian go away

and let Honey stay with Lillian’s brother, Joseph (Mr. Little). Things turn out pretty well until Nana Pete

had died from a heart attacked. Honey and Agnes had a major fight after Agnes was praying for Nana

Pete to come back alive, Honey said that it was impossible and had some argument that had caused

Honey to hit Agnes.

Rushing out the door, Honey hopped into the truck and then drove to the shop Lillian owned. She

rushed in causing everyone to suddenly look at her, and then she dragged Lillian back, at that same time

Agnes had called her parents to fly here and go pick up Agnes. After her parents arrive, Mr. Little called

Lillian the name she was given at Mount Blessing. After Agnes left, that was when Honey found out

Lillian was her mother, also she finally knew the reason why Nana Pete treated her like her own

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grandchild. When Agnes arrived at Mount Blessing, she saw there were rows of police cars parked in

front of the regulation room, the cops wanted to see all of the children, alone, that is when Emmanuel

said “remember, we are believers” meaning for them to not tell anything about the room. Because the

children were so scared they all didn’t respond to the negative things that were mentioned about

Mount Blessing. But then, Agnes thought about what was right and what she should do, slowly with

trembling legs, she stood up. At the same time, Honey and Lillian was driving to Mount Blessing, when

they arrive, the cops arrived because of the fact that Winky had called the police.

A few weeks later, all of the parents were to be kept in order to be questioned, that is when Honey

and Agnes stand on the same line, and race each other to the finish line.

They raced each other at the end because Agnes wanted to be a saint, and she thought racing was a

sin, but she finally loosened up from what Honey had helped her with. I thought this book was the

adventurous kind in the beginning, but then did I find out it was about friendship and love. This book

was very touching from what Honey had described in one of the chapters about how Agnes had changed

from the friend that she use to know to what she is now, a saint to be. I thought that it was outrageous

when I read to the part about that they were hit by Emmanuel. To what I think, people should not be

punished by what they have done just according to the rules that some guy had made, and I thoughtthat if the kids don’t want to live there, why do their parents make them? In a lot of the chapters, it

showed that Agnes had a string that was tied around the waist, and every time she had committed a sin,

she would tighten the string, just imagining it I would think would be hard enough for me, but to do it, it

takes guts.

This booked talked a lot about friendship and trust, and I also thought it was so touching when it

told the ending about how they raced each other. It would be hard for me to ever still hold on to the

friendship that Agnes and Honey had held on to, I would just have stopped being friends with Agnes

instead of trying to convince her back to being normal. I really loved this book because it connected with

the experiences that I had, my friend, well more like best friend had started to ‘fit in’ with the crowd,

and soon, she pretended that she didn’t ever know me. But before I came to America, I had to saygoodbye to her, and she said that the only reason she left me was because I started making new friends

and didn’t even talk to her. The misunderstanding was all over, but the things that had already

happened could not be solved, so I felt that I was in the same relationship with my best friend just like

how Agnes and Honey was. This story could be told to all ages and not to a limited age, it talks about

friendship, trust, and most important, holding onto your friend.