The Poisonwood Bible

Additional The Poisonwood Bible Information

The novel is set against one of the most dramatic political chronicles of the twentieth century: the Congo's fight for independence from Belgium, the murder of its first elected prime minister, the CIA coup to install his replacement, and the insidious progress of a world economic order that robs the fledgling African nation of its autonomy. Against this backdrop, Orleanna Price reconstructs the story of her evangelist husband's part in the Western assault on Africa, a tale indelibly darkened by her own losses and unanswerable questions about her own culpability. Also narrating the story, by turns, are her four daughters--the self-centered, teenaged Rachel; shrewd adolescent twins Leah and Adah; and Ruth May, a prescient five-year-old. These sharply observant girls, who arrive in the Congo with racial preconceptions forged in 1950s Georgia, will be marked in surprisingly different ways by their father's intractable mission, and by Africa itself. Ultimately each must strike her own separate path to salvation. Their passionately intertwined stories become a compelling exploration of moral risk and personal responsibility.

Dancing between the dark comedy of human failings and the breathtaking possibilities of human hope, The Poisonwood Bible possesses all that has distinguished Barbara Kingsolver's previous work, and extends this beloved writer's vision to an entirely new level. Taking its place alongside the classic works of postcolonial literature, this ambitious novel establishes Kingsolver as one of the most thoughtful and daring of modern writers.

What Customers Say About The Poisonwood Bible:

I took a chance on it because it was recommended by Oprah even though I felt I had no interest in the subject matter of a missionary family in Africa. I am an avid reader so it is a delight when I find a book this excellent.

You will be so happy you read it; it is an experience worth having. I cannot convince my husband to read it because of the subject matter, so if you are turning your nose up because of that, take a chance on this book and dive right in.

I just recommended this book to a friend looking for something really good to read. Kingsolver is a great writer and kept me mesmerized throughout the whole book.

Power Path to Love I would put this book in my top ten of all time.

I am so glad I did.

I only wish I could find even one a year of this quality. This book rates up there with some of the best I have ever read.

If you want to read a true story of a missionary daughter, read Divine Betrayal. I love this novel--it is written from several different points of view (each daughter) and is very well done. It inspired my friend, Grace Deters, to publish her memoirs, which are very similar to Poisonwood Bible but they are TRUE.

it is highly engrossing and entertaining, but also makes you think. i loved it from beginning to end. i would've loved to have read this book in school. this is an extraordinary book. kingsolver is a talented writer, and her prose enhances (and does not distract from) the fascinating plot.

As her novel points out, no country has been more ruined and "saved" by the west as the Congo. The Price's story cleary is a metaphor for what has become of the Congo, and how western values just do not work over there. It is a funny, yet life changing novel if you read it for what it was meant ot be. Any one who accuses Kingsolver of being political clearly does not know the histoy of the Congo. All she is doing is telling the facts.