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The poisonwood Bible : a novel -
Barbara Kingsolver.
Publisher description
New York : HarperFlamingo, c1998.
x, 546 p. ; 25 cm.
Annotations:
- Includes bibliographical references (p. 545-546).
Best Books:
- Adult, 1998 ; American Library Association-Booklist; United States
Best Books, 1998 ; Entertainment Weekly; United States
Editors' Choice, 1998 ; New York Times; United States
Publishers Weekly Best Children's Books, 1998 ; Cahners; United States
Senior High Core Collection, Seventeenth Edition, 2007 ; The H. W. Wilson Co.; United States
Senior High School Library Catalog, Sixteenth Edition, 2002 ; H.W. Wilson; United States
Senior High School Library Catalog, Supplement to the Fifteenth Edition, 1999 ; H.W. Wilson; United States
Reading Measurement Programs:
Reading Counts-Scholastic
Interest Level High School
Reading Level 8
Title Point Value 36
Lexile Measure 960
Reviews:
- Vicky Yablonsky (VOYA, October 1999 (Vol. 22, No. 4))
In 1959, Baptist missionary Nathan Price moves his family from Georgia to the Belgian Congo, with the single-minded goal of converting the natives of the remote village of Kilanga to Christianity. The family is woefully unprepared for the physical, spiritual, social, and political realities of Africa. They arrive at a time of political upheaval, with the Congo attempting to wrest its independence from Belgium. Kingsolver intertwines three parallel stories: the relationships within the Price family, the imposition of the Baptist mission on Kilanga, and the Congo's battle against colonial tyranny. The mother and four Price daughters tell the story in alternating chapters: sixteen-year-old, self-centered Rachel; teenage twins Leah and Adah; and five-year-old Ruth May. Their distinct voices and viewpoints paint a colorful picture of the humor and tragedy of their situation. They suffer through floods, drought, malaria, and attacks by ants and snakes. Price, righteous and tyrannical, shows little understanding or respect for the villagers or his own family. His arrogance has tragic consequences, dealt with over the ensuing years by each family member in her own characteristic way. This compelling novel, with its many levels, has the ability to grab and hold the reader just as Africa did the Price family. Kingsolver has created a cast of characters hard to forget. Though the novel's length may deter some young adult readers, the teenage narrators should appeal to many. Anyone who has read and liked Kingsolver's previous works, such as The Bean Tree (Harper, 1988) or Pigs in Heaven (HarperCollins, 1993), will appreciate this fine work. VOYA CODES: 5Q 3P S A/YA (Hard to imagine it being any better written; Will appeal with pushing; Senior High, defined as grades 10 to 12; Adult-marketed book recommended for Young Adults). 1998, HarperFlamingo, 543p, $26. Ages 15 to Adult. Subjects:
- Americans--Congo (Democratic Republic)--Fiction.
Missionaries--Fiction.
Congo (Democratic Republic)--Fiction.
Domestic fiction.
| Language | Call Number | LCCN | Dewey Decimal | ISBN/ISSN |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| English (eng) | PS3561.I496 P65 1998 |
98019901 |
813/.54 |
0060175400 9780060175405 |