Rating: 
Summary: I don't know what to say...
Review: In a nutshell, there is no way to adequately articulate my disdain for this book through words. To attempt to do so would be akin to channeling a tidal wave through a plastic straw.While the premise of the plot was somewhat promising, everything overall it was just a waste of time. This book is suitable only for happy-ending junkies who need a quick fix without any sort of a meaningful resolution.
Rating:
Summary: amazing writing? hardly.. more like atrocious
Review: for all those who have written reviews that this book is excellent and wonderfully written, i doubt this work can even deserved to be mentioned as actual literature. i think everyone should compare this non-entity with actual real works of literary merit, such as ellison's invisible man and fitzgerald's the great gatsby. the problems with this book start immeditaely from the disjointed plotline. having both codi and her father present the story makes things irretrievably complicated, and definitely not the "finely woven" text i'm sure kingsolver was looking for. also, the problems that codi seems to have seem rather trivial; indeed, one gets the feeling that they are largely made up or exaggerated by herself to draw pity from the outside world. all of her problems seem the same, so hardly any development of the plot can be said to take place for 4/5 of the book. codi spends 300 pages emotionally flailing her arms, looking for help when she cant bring herself to realize that emotional healing must start with HER first and foremost.. her realization of how she can create a better life for herself is the most unrealistic part of this book. in the space of one paragraph on one page, it suddenly occurs to her how she can fix her life. all at once, the problems go away and she sees everything in a bright new light.. please.. the only thing worse than asking readers to buy into codi's problems is asking us to believe that such a resolution could happen so rapidly. it almost seems as if kingsolver ran out of problems to give codi, and had to end everything quickly to achieve a happy ending so people are not bored with the text. the only problem is, the text is flat-out boring and uninstructive from the beginning. it does not teach readers any life lessons, (other than a lesson about whining when faced with ordeals) nor does it give readers hope. literary standards are indeed poor if kingsolver is considered one of the best writing talents out there today. whatever happened to real writers and real accomplishments? perhaps they have been diluted by the modern world and the need to "write commercially", which after all, is what kingsolver does - she writes her books so they sell.. a literary message is secondary.
Rating: 
Summary: How many tragedies can fit in a 300+ page novel?
Review: A series of life-defining tragedies are played out in "Animal Dreams": Sisters lose their mother in childhood, grow up isolated from their peers (thanks to a stiff and unattentive father), then grow apart after one (the narrator) suffers a miscarriage at 15. (As if a med school-bound girl would want a child at age 15!). Codi returns to her hometown after bailing out of med school and a dead end relationship, and intends to assist her ailing father. In Grace she confronts her father's progressive dementia, an environmental disaster,her family's secret history, and the abscence of her sister, whom she likens to God. Of course this leads to a very predictable ending, and the biggest tragedy of them all. Codi reluctantly becomes saviour of her father, her hometown's river and orchards, the high school, and berates herself for not saving Nicaragua and the Ozone layer as well. Four stars for elegant writing and an interesting location (gotta love Tucson!), which makes up for overblown sentimentality and preachy environmentalism.
Rating: 
Summary: An incredible story with incredible characters
Review: Hallie thought she was the luckiest person alive, while her sister Codi thought she didn't belong any where. The two sisters, both in their thirties, were raised by their eccentric and recalcitrant father, when their mother died shortly after Hallie's birth. When Hallie's adventurous spirit wills her off to Nicaragua, Codi feels more lost than ever, and decides to spend a year back in her home town of Grace, where her father and other figures from her childhood still live. Codi hadn't spoken to her father in years, and had grown accustomed to the silent barrier between them, that was marked only by a state boundary. She is not surprised to find her father unchanged and she once again resumed the struggle of trying to relate to him. A person Codi finds greatly changed is Loyd, a handsome Apache man, who in high school briefly touched her life and left behind a far deeper shadow than he knew. She is intrigued by his interest in her, but her long standing distrust and her secrets make her unwilling to fully open her heart. As old relationships develop and reawaken, Codi finds acceptance through saving the town of Grace from an environmental catastrophe. Codi struggles with confronting her past. And her memories, many of which were misconceptions that had changed her outlook on life and her self-image. The powerful imagery and intense flashbacks take you deep inside Codi's life so powerfully that at times, you feel almost uncomfortable. But you can't help relating to Codi for her imperfection and perfect display of human nature. This book is the fantastic read for almost anyone, although I think it might be aimed more towards women. The bluntness and characters pull you in right from the very beginning. This is my new favorite books!
Rating:
Summary: This book is as classy as a pair of purple cowboy boots.
Review: The astounding thing about this book is not that people like it. Of course people like it; it's a cheap romance with southwestern flair, and since its attention to minorities and inclusion of liberal political propaganda allow it to veil itself (albeit thinly) in a faux-pine veneer of literary merit, even those who normally suppress their appetite for cheap romance can read it and consider that they are reading something more meaningful than a LaVerle Spencer novel, or a Regency Romance. They are not. I'm not knocking genre fiction; I think it has its place and if I'm looking for brainless escape, I occasionally turn to it: it hurts my eyes less than television. I do think though that we should be aware of what we're reading. The astounding thing about this book is that readers are inclined to describe Kingsolver's prose as beautiful. Oh, my. My friends, what on earth have they been feeding you by way of books that in comparison Animal Dreams is BEAUTIFUL? Go to the library. Check out Proust, check out Nabokov. Look up Virginia Woolf, James Joyce, Thomas Pynchon. Dozens and dozens of others. "No," you say, "too dry, too subtle: I must have color, perverse metaphor, earthiness. I like Kingsolver's style . . . it simply shimmers upon the page." Go to the South American section. Check out a good translation of García Marquez, even Allende, who pales in comparison but could teach Kingsolver volumes. Spend some time with these authors, and then come back, and post a new review on Amazon.com. I suspect that we will see those four proud stars begin to wane. The average will plummet. We will hit 1 star by December. I see that I am not the only one who has been assigned to read this book for a class. But perhaps I am the only one who has read it for a graduate class, at a reputable university? The fact that themes treated meaningfully by authors in the past are included within these covers does not mean that it should be held in an esteem similar to the esteem in which we hold our literary giants! So-called important themes such as love, race, and belonging are equally treated in the books that line that grocery store aisle, the one that also displays hot rod magazines. If a class were about pulp fiction, I would be happy to read this novel, and write about it at length. I think that even soap operas are valid fodder for academic study, but not if we are expected to believe that they are as artistically important as a Shakespeare play, or for that matter a good independent film. However, I have no idea what element of this novel I can analyze credibly in a scholarly paper, other than the tendency of the reading public to glorify it. I did give it one star, though. Because Loyd sounds pretty hot. I think he could do much better than a woman who wears purple cowboy boots, even in the 80's. Please note, I am female: I am not rejecting this novel on sexist grounds, as prior reviewers have been accused of doing.
Rating:
Summary: Amazing !!!
Review: If I had to make a list of my ten favorite books of all time, this would be on it.
Rating:
Summary: What were you thinking?
Review: After decades of familial estrangement, a woman temporarily returns to her western hometown to be a doctor-turned-school-teacher and care for her father, a newly diagnosed Alzheimer's Disease patient. She finds solace in the company of her extended family and also the arms of an old high school crush. If dear reader values time or effort, he will stop right here and now, not wasting either on this publication. As in many other Kingsolver creations, the main character is an irresponsible middle-aged female who flits from one idea to the next without reason, rational thought or accountability. She reviews her pursuit of a medical career, only to quit a few months short of the completion of her training and complain about it. She bounces from one domestic fling to another and then expresses her dismay. She moves from one geographic location to another, only to (you guessed it) gripe about moving. Additionally, her reasons for really returning to her hometown are not extraordinarily clear, since her initial one-year plan did not include staying to care for her father throughout the duration of his terminal illness. Dear reader will time and time again ask of Kingsolver, "What is your point?" The title is gleaned from a short conversation between characters who witness a slumbering dog in dream state pursuit. The author and characters may only guess what that animal could be dreaming about, for we only see his legs moving as he sleeps, but can't quite see into his dream. Kingsolver vaguely attempts to tie this concept to the behavior of human beings, but never quite pulls it off, as she did so successfully with her newest publications. In a few weak examples, her Alzheimer's Disease patient is voicing a completely rational thought that seems so ludicrous to those who cannot see into his mind. I may only venture to guess that the author's intentions were much like those states of dreamy consciousness. We are never quite sure of her intentions, because even her written word will not reveal what is on her mind.
Rating:
Summary: beautiful prose, wonderful book
Review: Barbara Kingsolver is definately a talented writer. This is a work of prose but it reads like poetry. Her language is lush and warm as it lulls its readers in. She also has a great command of motifs and symbolism, though at times it feels like she has gone a little over the top with the 92nd mention of something. I sometimes found myself saying, "Ok, ok, I get it." But then there are smaller moments, when you are slowly chewing over a beautiful passage and out of a dark corner in your mind you see a similar image from so many pages ago and you smile in recognition. I love how she presented her characters. Doc Homer is slowly loosing his memory to alzheimers, he is disconnecting from the world around him, and Kingsolver has placed his story in the third person. Codi, on the other hand, has returned to Grace and is struggling to regain her memories, slowly reconnecting to her former self, so it is quite fitting that she speak in first person. A beautiful touch, so simple, yet so thoroughly ignored by most writers.
One thing that I found very wierd and for which I must criticize Kingsolver, is that there is no mention of where Codi's mother is buried. Burial sites are a common motif and to leave out the site of such an important character seems to be a major oversight on Kingsolver's part. She better have a pretty good explanation.
I almost sold this book once. I'm glad I didn't. I don't know if it is for everyone, but what book is? If you want to read a book about love in all its forms, from familial to sexual, written by an amazing writer who will constantly treat you to beautiful prose and who will occasionally hit you in the gut with something so profound and wise that you must take a minute to catch your breath after a moment of awe, then you just might like this book.
Rating:
Summary: Technicolor dreams, more like
Review: I checked a map of Arizona trying to find Grace, even though i knew it was an imaginary town. But it seemed so real that i longed to visit it. Kingsolver's style reminded me of such authors as Gabriel Garcia Marquez or Isabel Allende, who use a lot of imagery and colorful descriptions. I cried, i laughed. Beautiful book!
Rating:
Summary: The best characters
Review: I love this book. The characters that Kingsolver creates worm their way into your thoughts weeks or months after you read the book. There were times I felt exposed as I read Animal Dreams ... as if one of the characters had been developed by spying on my thoughts. I find all of Barbara Kingsolver's work worthwhile, but Animal Dreams is still my favorite by this entertaining, intelligent author.
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