Pigs in Heaven / Bean Trees / Poisonwood Bible / Prodigal Summer

by Barbara Kingsolver

Genres: Fiction

1616 pages, Paperback

First published October 7, 2003

About the author

Barbara Ellen Kingsolver is a Pulitzer Prize-winning American novelist, essayist, and poet. Her widely known works include The Poisonwood Bible, the tale of a missionary family in the Congo, and Animal, Vegetable, Miracle, a nonfiction account of her family's attempts to eat locally. In 2023, she was awarded the Pulitzer Prize for Fiction for the novel Demon Copperhead. Her work often focuses on topics such as social justice, biodiversity, and the interaction between humans and their communities and environments.
Kingsolver has received numerous awards, including the Dayton Literary Peace Prize's Richard C. Holbrooke Distinguished Achievement Award 2011 and the National Humanities Medal. After winning for The Lacuna in 2010 and Demon Copperhead in 2023, Kingsolver became the first author to win the Women's Prize for Fiction twice. Since 1993, each one of her book titles have been on the New York Times Best Seller list.
Kingsolver was raised in rural Kentucky, lived briefly in the Congo in her early childhood, and she currently lives in Appalachia. Kingsolver earned degrees in biology, ecology, and evolutionary biology at DePauw University and the University of Arizona, and worked as a freelance writer before she began writing novels. In 2000, the politically progressive Kingsolver established the Bellwether Prize to support "literature of social change".

Reviews

[Michele Cacano · Rating 5 out of 5]

Love Kingsolver's style. Bean Trees and sequels were fun! And Poisonwood Bible is so well written, each chapter by a different character, so distinct and interesting.

[Colleen · Rating 5 out of 5]

I read them all. Pigs in Heaven and the Bean Trees were favorite books in the days of Mrs. Lindenhoff. I even wrote a paper on them. The last one is what I would have to describe as her weakest, but I did gain a different appreciation for moths.

[Mark · Rating 4 out of 5]

I liked this book. Having a career in Social Work and some cases with tribal members I know the value of belonging to a tribe. Somewhat predictable, yet entertaining and emotional. I recommend it to all.

[Cathy Goheen · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book wasn’t quite as captivating as the Poisonwood Bible but a great read!

[Katie Junge · Rating 5 out of 5]

Pigs in Heaven

[Sharon Snyder · Rating 4 out of 5]

Find that I love these books because Kingsolver can use her words to paint a picture of both human traits and feelings we all share and she has an incredible understanding of nature and how we are connected to the earth. In a time when it seems that the connection between man and the earth around us is lost..her books remind me how interdependant we are. I just love the way she develops her characters and how they seem somehow familiar because she has an innate sense of the feelings and emotions that we share.The "poisonwood Bible" was my first read by Kingsolver and I was hooked after. Read all of her books thus far. None have disappointed.

[Karen · Rating 4 out of 5]

Have read most of these, but want to again. It's been a long while!

Just finished Pigs in Heaven - the sequel to the Bean Trees. After reading the Winding Ways Quilt book, with it's skeletal plot and characters, this book was such a feast of words! I love the way Barbara Kinsolver writes!
It's probably been ten years or more since I read these books but I remembered them instantly - not exactly how the story went, but the characters. As each was introduced it was like meeting up with old friends.
Ah...a real book!

[Jennifer Lindsay · Rating 4 out of 5]

March 18, 2012: Finished this book last week. Took me a long while to get into it, but after about halfway through, I couldn't put it down. Really loved the voices of each woman. Amazing the directions their lives took. Compelling individual stories.

Just starting The Poisonwood Bible. It's been on my to-read list for quite sometime. The story of a missionary family in the Congo in 1959. Each chapter is written by one of the females in the family.

Mom and Carolyn recommend this author highly.

[Kristin N · Rating 5 out of 5]

Barbara Kingsolver is my favorite author thus far. What i find interesting about these four books being grouped together is that the writing styles found in Poisonwood Bible and Prodigal Summer differ dramatically from the tone set forth in both Pigs in Heaven and the Bean Trees. All of Kingsolver's books have amazing characters that get inside of you so you can experience the world from someone else's point of view.

[Charles · Rating 5 out of 5]

Maya Angelou once said "The Truth is a stubborn fact." This is true for the Poisonwood Bible. Outstanding literature - deeper thant the Bean Tree trilogy and Prodigal Summer. This book goes to the essence of my beliefs that we must accept people and situations as they are, and assimilate into cultures we visit.

[Lois · Rating 4 out of 5]

Barbara Kingsolver intertwines her political statement about nature and man as she weaves a wonderful story. Kingsolver always manages to transport me to another place and time. Her writing makes the pages just fly by.

[Nicki Pfaff · Rating 2 out of 5]

I only read The Poisonwood Bible, and I wasn't all that fussed by it. It starts off very strong, and then goes awry about 200 pages in. I can't even remember the ending, but the beginning of the book is incredibly vivid and full of excellent sensory details.

[Michelle · Rating 3 out of 5]

Real, textured character after character after character.

[Sarah Hossenlopp · Rating 4 out of 5]

I personally think Kingsolver's earlier novels are her best. I specifically appreciate her character development.

[Wende · Rating 5 out of 5]

all of these books are classic kingsolver, each one fantastic, poisonwood bible is my all time favorite read

[Marnie · Rating 5 out of 5]

Loved them all, read everything I could by her when I had the summer of reading!

[Kate · Rating 5 out of 5]

marathon

[Emily · Rating 3 out of 5]

I read this book a while ago and so don't remember it completely. I do know that I liked it and thought the story was easy to get into.

[Theresa · Rating 4 out of 5]

I haven't read Prodigal Summer but the other three were equally as good

[Kelli · Rating 5 out of 5]

i've read poisonwood, bean trees, and prodigal summer and loved them all. pigs is on my list to read.

[Kara · Rating 4 out of 5]

I am reading the poisonwood bible by Barbara Kingsolver not the whole collection. This is all they had to choose from in the list.

[Your Friend · Rating 4 out of 5]

Only read the poisonwood bible... Couldn't get through pigs in heaven it was too depressing n boring

[Chelsea · Rating 3 out of 5]

still reading....want to finnish. I dont know why I havnt, I remember liking it.

[Emilie · Rating 5 out of 5]

Love love love Barbara Kingsolver. Tells it like it is. Rich language. Real, imperfect characters. Fantastic stories.

[Val · Rating 5 out of 5]

I've only read the Poisonwood Bible, not the set...but it was one of the best books I've read. I rarely read a book twice, but this one I have, and would read it again

[Heatheracarr]

I love the way she writes, Poisonwood was written in five different stories before they were put together, its amazing!

[Domenique · Rating 5 out of 5]

One of my favorite authors. She puts her biology background and writing gifts to great use in everything she writes

[Alexa · Rating 5 out of 5]

Congo at the time of independence as seen by a missionary's family impacted for their whole lives by their experiences there. Very strong.

[Sue]

Read all four. Very different books, she is a versatile writer. They are great.

[Kylene · Rating 4 out of 5]

Love, love , love everything by her.