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lynnclairet 's review for:
The Poisonwood Bible
by Barbara Kingsolver
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.