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Post by joebill on Aug 26, 2017 13:39:12 GMT
Perhaps the strangest work of fiction I have ever read, not because of the plot, which is VERY gripping, but because I had to stop from time to t ime and remind myself that it WAS fiction.....the aurthor HAD to live that life in her mind to make it that real.
A fanatical missionary father uproots his family and takes them on a mission to the Congo in the late 50's. that has even been abandoned by his Church, it's prospects are so dismal. As his sanity slowly slips away, his prospects and those of his wife and 4 daughters become even more dismal, but as he deteriorates, they become stronger, and each daughter relates her portion of the story in first person. The personalities of the daughters are so well defined in the narrative it's like reading 4 seperate books at once. Covers the daughters through adulthood.
I have read other books by Klingsolver and been entertained, but in my mind THIS was her shining moment....never to be surpassed.
Lots of history about the congo.....If I believed in reincarnation, I would be comvinced the author lived this story in another life. I buy copies from used book stores and give them to friends.....Joe
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Post by Deleted on Aug 26, 2017 13:53:57 GMT
I will check out Abe Books to see if they have a copy.
Thanks for the book review!
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Post by themotherhen on Aug 26, 2017 18:41:52 GMT
I read that book too and was also amazed that it was fiction. The part about the father's stubbornness regarding gardening methods was very telling. I always wondered if the author actually went to the Congo, it was as if I could smell the air and soil. I wish I still had that book!
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Post by Deleted on Aug 27, 2017 1:29:03 GMT
I've thrown it in my Amazon cart. I can get a hard copy for $5.04, perhaps I'll buy a copy this coming week. It sounds interesting.
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Post by tabitha on Aug 27, 2017 1:35:19 GMT
DD has it and told me the story.
I have read "Animal Vegetable Miracle" by her.
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Post by Deleted on Aug 27, 2017 2:53:59 GMT
Abe Books (abebooks.com) has many copies, priced from $3.48 to $3.65, shipped. My copy will be here sometime in the next week or so.
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Post by Deleted on Aug 27, 2017 12:32:53 GMT
Oh, cool! I'll have to look around Abe books. They've got hardcover copies too My sister is going to a book sale / yard sale today. I'll tell her to keep an eye out for this one.
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Post by Ozarks Tom on Aug 27, 2017 13:13:34 GMT
Poisonwood Bible was one of 7 books we ordered from Amazon yesterday.
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Post by Deleted on Aug 27, 2017 13:47:09 GMT
@pony, WHY?! WHY did you have to show me Abe Books. My cart is filling up with more books than I can afford now. D=
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Post by Deleted on Aug 27, 2017 14:20:14 GMT
@pony , WHY?! WHY did you have to show me Abe Books. My cart is filling up with more books than I can afford now. D= LOL! Unless I am ordering books for my clients, I will put my impulse choices into the "hold for later" file. Then, if I still want those in a couple or three weeks, I'll go ahead and buy them. It is a wonderful site, isn't it?
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Post by Deleted on Aug 27, 2017 14:21:35 GMT
Poisonwood Bible was one of 7 books we ordered from Amazon yesterday. And the other 6 were....? (Glad to see your net connection is working again!)
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Post by Ozarks Tom on Aug 27, 2017 17:10:28 GMT
@pony, Two by James Wesley Rawles (Survivalblog.com), Patriots and Expatriates. One by Mark Levin, Rediscovering Americanism, and three for DW.
Internet is still iffy, worse than dial-up last night, super fast this morning.
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Post by joebill on Sept 3, 2017 16:22:21 GMT
I read that book too and was also amazed that it was fiction. The part about the father's stubbornness regarding gardening methods was very telling. I always wondered if the author actually went to the Congo, it was as if I could smell the air and soil. I wish I still had that book! Each of the daughters was given a Betty Crocker cake mix to perpetually care for upon leaving, because each would have a birthday while they were gone....and need a birthday cake. ....Joe
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Post by DEKE on Sept 3, 2017 17:13:24 GMT
Pony destroyed a business today. Abebooks site is currently offline.
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Post by Deleted on Sept 4, 2017 0:34:27 GMT
joebill, I don't know whether to thank you or smack you one. I am now on my way to polish off that darned book, which has held me mesmerized for two days now. Be careful with this one, folks. It sucks you in... And yes, themotherhen, the author did live in the Congo, but her parents were much more functional than the fictional parents in the book.
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