Wow! Not my favorite book in the world, but definitely one for bringing up some deep issues. The premise is a Baptist minister from Georgia relocates his family of 5 (all women/girls, besides himself) to the Congo to bring the heathen peoples there to the light of Christ. Barbara Kingsolver tells the story through journal entries from each of the 4 women/girls in the family. That was a stroke of genius b/c you get so many different views of the same situations and happenings. While this book is a work of fiction, Kingsolver really did her homework and has tried to make the surroundings as historically and socially accurate as possible; which I always really appreciate. The biggest questions it raised for me were: What would I do if I were to be plunked down in the Congo for a year's time? How would I react to/interact with the native peoples? Could I do it at all?
All in all, a good read, 3 stars for good writing and interesting social/emotional questions.
Sarah Elizabeth
P.S. The book is about 550 pages long, but it reads rather quickly (I was able to do it in 5 days) so don't let the length deter you.
3 comments:
What would I do if I lived in the Congo?? I can barely CAMP!!
Basically Roll over and DIE!! oh!! and the SNAKES...eek!
It sounds pretty interesting. Maybe we could look at going to the Congo sometime for a reunion and really find out what we would all do :)
No Thanks, I think I would be unavoidably detained...like in a spa on a "real" reunion...or maybe camping;)
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