How did I make it to October of 2014 without a post on Barbara Kingsolver? She is certainly one of the most significant American women writing today and has been since the publication and critical-acclaim of her first novel The Bean Trees, which I read as a junior in high school for an AP Language class.
The next year, in AP Literature, I had to read The Poisonwood Bible, a novel that has stuck with me as one of my all-time favorites for over ten years now. My copy got so dog-eared and worn out I had to replace it. I loved it so much that I did a presentation on it for class that required limping around the classroom and pretending to be a mute (if you've read it, that makes a lot of sense). I have read and re-read it, and every time it surprises me and I am reminded again of Kingsolver's incredible talent as a storyteller.
More recently I read Animal, Vegetable, Miracle, her nonfiction book on local and sustainable food. It was a very smug reminder that her life is not like your life, and at times I found it to be incredibly frustrating in a Gwyneth Paltrow-type way. But, I also found it infinitely more enjoyable than anything else I've read on the local foods movement, not only because Kingsolver is a writer first and a sustainable gardener second, but also because it was so deeply personal and forthright.
My book club read The Lacuna last year, and I'm very embarrassed to admit that it is the only book club selection I didn't read, and not even for any good reason (I did only partially read Delta of Venus, but that was a very deliberate choice). I just had too many other good books to finish up, and I neglected it for too long and then suddenly a month had gone by and it was time to discuss it. When I realized I wasn't going to finish it in time, I put it back on the shelf, but I have every intention of getting it back out and trying again someday.
