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Type of bind: Paperback
Dewey Decimal Number: 813.54
EAN num: 9780060786502
ISBN number: 0060786507
Label: Harper Perennial Modern Classics
Manufacturer: Harper Perennial Modern Classics
Quantity: 1
Page Count: 576
Printing Date: May 31, 2005
Publishing house: Harper Perennial Modern Classics
Release Date: May 31, 2005
Sale Popularity Level: 915
Studio: Harper Perennial Modern Classics
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Editor's Notes and Comments:
Amazon.com:
Oprah Book Club® Selection, June 2000: As any reader of The Mosquito Coast knows, men who drag their families to far-off climes in pursuit of an Idea seldom come to any good, while those familiar with At Play in the Fields of the Lord or Kalimantaan understand that the minute a missionary sets foot on the fictional stage, all hell is about to break loose. So when Barbara Kingsolver sends missionary Nathan Price along with his wife and four daughters off to Africa in The Poisonwood Bible, you can be sure that salvation is the one thing they're not likely to find. The year is 1959 and the place is the Belgian Congo. Nathan, a Baptist preacher, has come to spread the Word in a remote village reachable only by airplane. To say that he and his family are woefully unprepared would be an understatement: 'We came from Bethlehem, Georgia, bearing Betty Crocker cake mixes into the jungle,' says Leah, one of Nathan's daughters. But of course it isn't long before they discover that the tremendous humidity has rendered the mixes unusable, their clothes are unsuitable, and they've arrived in the middle of political upheaval as the Congolese seek to wrest independence from Belgium. In addition to poisonous snakes, dangerous animals, and the hostility of the villagers to Nathan's fiery take-no-prisoners brand of Christianity, there are also rebels in the jungle and the threat of war in the air. Could things get any worse?
In fact they can and they do. The very first part of The Poisonwood Bible revolves around Nathan's intransigent, bullying personality and his effect on both his family and the village they have come to. As political instability grows in the Congo, so does the local witch doctor's animus toward the Prices, and both seem to converge with tragic consequences about halfway through the novel. From that point on, the family is dispersed and the novel follows each member's fortune across a span of more than 30 years.
The Poisonwood Bible is arguably Barbara Kingsolver's most ambitious work, and it reveals both her great strengths and her weaknesses. As Nathan Price's wife and daughters tell their stories in alternating chapters, Kingsolver does a good job of differentiating the voices. But at times they can grate--teenage Rachel's tendency towards precious malapropisms is particularly annoying (students practice their 'French congregations'; Nathan's refusal to take his family home is a 'tapestry of justice'). More problematic is Kingsolver's tendency to wear her politics on her sleeve; this is particularly evident in the second half of the novel, in which she uses her characters as mouthpieces to explicate the complicated and tragic history of the Belgian Congo.
Despite these weaknesses, Kingsolver's fully realized, three-dimensional characters make The Poisonwood Bible compelling, especially in the very first half, when Nathan Price is still at the center of the action. And in her treatment of Africa and the Africans she is at her best, exhibiting the acute perception, moral engagement, and lyrical prose that have made her previous novels so successful. --Alix Wilber
Product Description:
The Poisonwood Bible is a story told by the wife and four daughters of Nathan Price, a fierce, evangelical Baptist who takes his family and mission to the Belgian Congo in 1959. They carry with them everything they believe they will need from home, but soon find that all of it -- from garden seeds to Scripture -- is calamitously transformed on African soil. What follows is a suspenseful epic of one family's tragic undoing and remarkable reconstruction over the course of three decades in postcolonial Africa.
This P.S. edition features an extra 16 pages of insights into the book, including author interviews, recommended reading, and more.
User popularity level:
Rated by buyers -
This is a really good book that is a basic bible for how not to do missions. I resisted reading this for years, but now I'm glad I did. I really got to know th characters deeply and disagree with other reviewers who feel that the characters were shallow. I enjoyed the short chapters which presented each set of circumstances from each of the five voices. A bit frustrating at the end when the author chose to simply report on different chunks of time from each of the 4 remaining women's lives. I felt the sting of death deeply during the reading of this book.
I highly recommend this book and find myself intrigued with a wonderful part of the world whose native peoples have been subjected to horrifying circumstances and world politics.
Rated by buyers 
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Great book - I think Kingsolver's best. Really points out the arrogance of mankind and the impact we can have on others. A lot of insight into humankind, without being maudlin or trite. Made me laugh, made me cry, made me want to leave the world somehow a better place by being more understanding, tolerant and learning to listen.
Rated by buyers -
This is one of the top ten books I've read in my life of 65 years. It is a plesantly exciting read and quite intellectually stimulating.
Rated by buyers 
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I thought this was an OK book. I did like reading about the Congo and its history. However, I found the characters to be just *too* one-dimensional. I think the author could have done so much more w/the eldest sister, Rachel -- it's like she stayed 17 forever - as if she'd have the same views as a 40 year-old that she did as a teenager. Also, although Leah, the heroine, had good and appropriate cause to be disapproving and judgmental, I found her to be completely nauseating nonetheless. Adah seemed to be the only character that grew, and therefore was my fav.
Rated by buyers -
A great story and has something for everyone. Some of the stories in this book made me laugh out loud. This book is on my top ten list of all time favorites.
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