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4.15 AVERAGE
4.15 AVERAGE
Nathaniel Price, his wife Orleanna, and his 4 daughters go to the Congo to convert the heathens there to Christianity. The chapter's narrator cycles through the women. Oddly enough, Reverend Price himself is never a narrator.
Orleanna always sets up a new section of the book. She's looking back with a deep sadness.
Rachel is the eldest daughter and is affronted at having to move into the backwards Congo. She's not a little vain and her narrative style is full of cliches and she comes across as thinking she's smarter than she is.
Leah is the healthy twin. She starts out dotting on her father but ends up the one to most fully adapt to life in the Congo.
Adah is the twin that is nearly paralyzed on one side of her body. She is obsessed with palindromes and her narrative style is takes the most getting used to.
Ruth May is the youngest. She's five and her style is cute and naive. What happens to her spurs on the second half of the novel.
The time in which they go to the Congo is a turbulent one. While there Belgium loses its colony as the Congo declares its independence. Not too long after, the new leader is assassinated. The first half of the novel covers the 2 years leading up to this. The second half of the novel overs the 30 years after it. Ms. Kingsolver switching from a short time frame to a nearly sprawling epic made me feel like I was reading a followup book and not the second half of the same book.
It was a very sad story and parts of it were gripping. But those parts were separated by long stretches of storytelling that I didn't particularly care for. It does raise many a thought-provoking issue, like what it means to be white or what it means to be disabled, but for me the story never reached its potential. I wouldn't say it was a bad book and I might even recommend it. But I would say, don't expect too much from it.
Orleanna always sets up a new section of the book. She's looking back with a deep sadness.
Rachel is the eldest daughter and is affronted at having to move into the backwards Congo. She's not a little vain and her narrative style is full of cliches and she comes across as thinking she's smarter than she is.
Leah is the healthy twin. She starts out dotting on her father but ends up the one to most fully adapt to life in the Congo.
Adah is the twin that is nearly paralyzed on one side of her body. She is obsessed with palindromes and her narrative style is takes the most getting used to.
Ruth May is the youngest. She's five and her style is cute and naive. What happens to her spurs on the second half of the novel.
The time in which they go to the Congo is a turbulent one. While there Belgium loses its colony as the Congo declares its independence. Not too long after, the new leader is assassinated. The first half of the novel covers the 2 years leading up to this. The second half of the novel overs the 30 years after it. Ms. Kingsolver switching from a short time frame to a nearly sprawling epic made me feel like I was reading a followup book and not the second half of the same book.
It was a very sad story and parts of it were gripping. But those parts were separated by long stretches of storytelling that I didn't particularly care for. It does raise many a thought-provoking issue, like what it means to be white or what it means to be disabled, but for me the story never reached its potential. I wouldn't say it was a bad book and I might even recommend it. But I would say, don't expect too much from it.
Really slow going but worth the ride. Had to finish up on audio, which actually enhanced the journey.
I have sat with my thoughts on this one for several days trying to figure out how to explain my reaction upon finishing a book I have heard so much about for years and that is clearly very loved and respected by so many other people. After much contemplation, I have come to two conclusions, either 1) I have completely missed something in Kingsolver’s novel or 2) I have simply read too many similar stories to make this one seem groundbreaking. I am inclined to believe it’s the latter. Let me be clear, this was a good book that I was largely invested in while reading, although I did find some of the narrative voices to be stronger (Adah and Orelanna) and more engaging than others (Leah and Rachel). However, I also found it to be a bit too familiar. I’ve read several other postcolonial books about various locations in Africa, so I think reading one from the perspective of a white, American family, even one that is highly critical of the missionaries and European/American politics at play on the continent, just wasn’t something I felt I needed. So, overall, I can see why my reaction isn’t typical and really shouldn’t be a reflection on the novel itself. This is one that I would highly recommend to anyone who hasn’t read much about “postcolonial” Africa and one that I would suggest be read in conjunction with some of the texts Kingsolver used in her own research, particularly anything by Chinua Achebe.
Stunning, wrenching, and dark portrayal of a somewhat rogue missionary trip to the Congo, and the long aftermath of trying to pick up the pieces.
I was recommended this book upon reading and enjoying Adichie's "Half of a Yellow Sun". When I starting out reading, I couldn't have expected the journey that the characters of this book took me on. For me, the book got off to a slow start, and it took me until maybe close to halfway through the book to feel really compelled to carry on - if not for the recommendation from a person whose reading taste I respect, I may have given up on it early on and missed out on a treasure.
Through its use of multiple narrators, The Poisonwood Bible explores colonialism, the US and American culture, Whiteness, faith, righteousness, justice, humanity, and what exists beyond humanity, in a fictional tale with beautiful descriptive writing which seemed to live and breathe on its own. There is so much depth to this novel, so many connections weaved through fictional decades with beautiful subtlety, that I know I will have to re-read this book to fully appreciate what it offers the reader.
Reading this book, I was reminded of Bayo Akomolafe and some of the things he writes about in [b:These Wilds Beyond Our Fences: Letters to My Daughter on Humanity's Search for Home|34355617|These Wilds Beyond Our Fences Letters to My Daughter on Humanity's Search for Home|Bayo Akomolafe|https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1498892833l/34355617._SX50_.jpg|55432612]. There were certainly parts, often in Adah's writing, which were a bit too esoteric and poetic for me to understand. But, for the depth of meaning in this book alone, I couldn't give it anything less than five stars.
I will continue to think about the perspectives offered by the characters of this book for a long time to come.
I appreciated Adah's arc as someone who navigated the world not being accepted as "whole" for a long time. Her view of the place and worth of human life in the grand landscape of the world was a fascinating way to tie up her experiences in Kilanga and beyond, and she is a character I felt a warmth towards throughout the book.
Rachel was self-absorbed, vain, lacked self-awareness, and her narrow sightedness limited her worldview to what immediately impacted her either positively or (and mostly) negatively. Perhaps I only feel this way because I feel very distanced from a character like Rachel, but she felt the most two-dimensional of all the characters; I found it difficult to image someone who truly had such little self-awareness and so nonchalantly created a whites-only hotel while living through apartheid South Africa and the imperial project in Africa in the 20th century. That said, perhaps I'm just naive, and want to believe that nobody can be that lacking in critical thinking or self-reflection.
Through its use of multiple narrators, The Poisonwood Bible explores colonialism, the US and American culture, Whiteness, faith, righteousness, justice, humanity, and what exists beyond humanity, in a fictional tale with beautiful descriptive writing which seemed to live and breathe on its own. There is so much depth to this novel, so many connections weaved through fictional decades with beautiful subtlety, that I know I will have to re-read this book to fully appreciate what it offers the reader.
Reading this book, I was reminded of Bayo Akomolafe and some of the things he writes about in [b:These Wilds Beyond Our Fences: Letters to My Daughter on Humanity's Search for Home|34355617|These Wilds Beyond Our Fences Letters to My Daughter on Humanity's Search for Home|Bayo Akomolafe|https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1498892833l/34355617._SX50_.jpg|55432612]. There were certainly parts, often in Adah's writing, which were a bit too esoteric and poetic for me to understand. But, for the depth of meaning in this book alone, I couldn't give it anything less than five stars.
I will continue to think about the perspectives offered by the characters of this book for a long time to come.
Spoiler
I particularly resonated with Leah and her struggles. To me, her life was spent chasing belonging and justice while in a place where her skin alone signified foreignness and oppression to those around her. One of the conclusions she reaches, that perhaps justice doesn't exist and instead there is only balance, gives me a lot to think about as someone who dreams of a future world in which a pure, shining thing called justice has come to pass.I appreciated Adah's arc as someone who navigated the world not being accepted as "whole" for a long time. Her view of the place and worth of human life in the grand landscape of the world was a fascinating way to tie up her experiences in Kilanga and beyond, and she is a character I felt a warmth towards throughout the book.
Rachel was self-absorbed, vain, lacked self-awareness, and her narrow sightedness limited her worldview to what immediately impacted her either positively or (and mostly) negatively. Perhaps I only feel this way because I feel very distanced from a character like Rachel, but she felt the most two-dimensional of all the characters; I found it difficult to image someone who truly had such little self-awareness and so nonchalantly created a whites-only hotel while living through apartheid South Africa and the imperial project in Africa in the 20th century. That said, perhaps I'm just naive, and want to believe that nobody can be that lacking in critical thinking or self-reflection.
Spoiler
I enjoyed so many aspects of this book. I enjoyed the thoroughly fleshed out characters, the intimate look into the results of colonialization and foreign interference in Africa, and the talented writing. The narrator switching between Price women as a storytelling tool really worked for me.
challenging
sad
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes