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The Poisonwood Bible

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The Poisonwood Bible

By: Barbara Kingsolver
Narrated by: Dean Robertson
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About this listen

“A powerful new epic... [Kingsolver] has with infinitely steady hands worked the prickly threads of religion, politics, race, sin and redemption into a thing of terrible beauty.” - Los Angeles Times Book Review

The Poisonwood Bible is a story told by the wife and four daughters of Nathan Price, a fierce, evangelical Baptist who takes his family and mission to the Belgian Congo in 1959. They carry with them everything they believe they will need from home, but soon find that all of it - from garden seeds to Scripture - is calamitously transformed on African soil. What follows is a suspenseful epic of one family’s tragic undoing and remarkable reconstruction over the course of three decades in postcolonial Africa.

The novel is set against one of the most dramatic political chronicles of the twentieth century: the Congo's fight for independence from Belgium, the murder of its first elected prime minister, the CIA coup to install his replacement, and the insidious progress of a world economic order that robs the fledgling African nation of its autonomy. Taking its place alongside the classic works of postcolonial literature, this ambitious novel establishes Kingsolver as one of the most thoughtful and daring of modern writers.

©1998 by Barbara Kingsolver. (P)1998 Brilliance Audio, all rights reserved. Emotionally Gripping Heartfelt Inspiring Thought-Provoking Tear-jerking Classics

Critic Reviews

"Haunting...A novel of character, a narrative shaped by keen-eyed women." (New York Times Book Review)

"Beautifully written....Kingsolver's tale of domestic tragedy is more than just a well-told yarn.. Played out against the bloody backdrop of political struggles in Congo that continue to this day, it is also particularly timely." (People)

"The book's sheer enjoyability is given depth by Kingsolver's insight and compassion for Congo, including its people, and their language and sayings." (Boston Globe)

What listeners say about The Poisonwood Bible

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Profile Image for Sheepish

An extraordinary story

Th narrator was completely convincing as she switched to voice each character and their southern accents. This book is a fascinating look at the true & tragic history of the Congo through the eyes of a mother and her daughters from Atlanta, Georgia with their religious zealot husband and father. We stay with this family and the Congo for so 30 or 40 years. A must read.

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Profile Image for Leapfrog

Worth the wait

By worth the wait, I mean worth the challenge you may encounter getting stuck into the story and narration. With a few characters to get to know, distinguishing between them is tricky in the audio at first, but the character development is beautiful. The first half of the book seemed too slow for audio but by the end it was racing by.

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Profile Image for Anonymous User

Compelling & multi layered

Life in 1959 onwards as missionaries in the Congo Through the eyes of the female family members -absolutely riveting. Rich & insightful language. Characters are so distinct and vividly represented to the point you feel physically transported into their lives as if you are standing next to them -just brilliant. Could not stop
Listening.

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Profile Image for Alex

Beautiful and insightful

I listened to this as it was someone’s favorite book. I can see why. It is beautiful in prose and structure while the human vehicles (and so the reader) are laid bare, bones bleached by driver ants. I have feel marked by this work. My thanks to the author.

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Profile Image for KateS

Stunning

This is an extraordinary story and the use of the first person from all the female characters point's of view works extremely well. It is a history lesson in depth and with heart. Barbara Kingsolver's writing is exquisitely beautiful. Her research must be extensive. Cannot recommend it enough.

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Profile Image for Gai Stern

Engrossing and beautifully written

Loved it! Couldn't stop listening as I was totally immersed. Brilliant book. Thank you.

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Profile Image for MISS

The Poisonwood Bible

Historically accurate, great insights into this period of the Congo's history. I really enjoyed the characters they really come to life. This was my first Barabara Kingsolver and I will be reading more.

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Profile Image for The surgeon

Brilliance

Stunningly heartfelt thought provoking and brilliantly told family story woven from a variety of perspectives. I was particularly delighted with the play on words for two of the characters.
thank you

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Profile Image for Ms T BAKER

This will stay with me for a long time!

Amazing narrative voice by Kingsolver brought to life by the fantastic narration of Dean Robertson. A masterclass in characterisation.

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astonishing. a master piece.

changed my picture of the world. never knew writing could be so profound and inventive.

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