Kidd, Sue Monk: - Sue Monk Kidd was born in Sylvester, Georgia. During her thirties, she became deeply influenced by the work of Thomas Merton and C. G. Jung, which would impact her writing in the years ahead. She is the author of When the Heart Waits (1990), The Dance of the Dissident Daughter (1996), The Secret Life of Bees (2002), which sold 4.5 million copies worldwide, The Mermaid Chair (2005), and Firstlight (2006).