Rating: 
Summary: Is there a story somewhere in this wordy swamp?
Review: May the good Lord save me from flowery women writers.
I like to find a story when I read and all I find are gossimer wings and comparisons between man and nature.
Boring, boring, boring.
Just my opinion, of course, but I found it a waste of time
Rating: 
Summary: an enjoyable and intelligent read!
Review: My book club selected this book and I was surprised by how much I enjoyed it. I quickly enjoyed getting to know all 4 main characters, and their stories, and how the book so easily demonstrated how we are all connected -- all people, all nature. I learned so much through this book. Thought provoking, but in a fun way, as one gets into the heads of the characters. Humorous. Soul-ful. Beautifully written.
Rating:
Summary: interesting contrast to Poisonwood Bible
Review: I enjoyed the scenes in the woods and their sensuality. Seemed to be a commentary or exploration of the duality between natural world and human institutions like families and towns, between the individual and societies. Made me consider my use of pesticides more carefully. This book didn't seem like it could have been written by the same author as Poisonwood Bible. More promising & hopeful in tone. Beautiful, easy read.
Rating:
Summary: Wonderful Story Cut Short
Review: Kingsolver uses her talented descriptive voice to tell three very different, yet connected, stories of admiration. While the main story of the novel itself is absolutely beautiful, I was disappointed with the ending which happened too soon and in an awkward way. Of course, this may be a convention of the author used to force the reader to continue the story for herself; but still, I would have liked to find out what happens to the characters when they all eventually meet.
Rating: 
Summary: Lovely
Review: Notice, I wrote lovely and not amazing or great. This is a very pleasant read. Something for a quiet afternoon or maybe a plane ride or just sitting in the sun. There is not much drama going on here. It flip flops from one person to another and doesnt come together in the end at all. It is three short stories in one book. Nothing dramatic at all. No high, suspensful moments and no low ones either. Just enough to keep up the curiosity of the reader going. This doesnt come close to "Poisonwood Bible". Now that is one book I DO recommend.
Rating:
Summary: The story behind is worth the reading
Review: First, let's get the nit-picking out of the way. This book does not devote a whole section to preaching, as did Poisonwood Bible, but the urge to educate the reader was dispensed throughout. Women are smart, men need convinced. Of what? primarily that organic is good and chemicals are bad. However, this woman recalls the last organic item she purchased, orange juice, tasted like carrot juice gone rancid. So I was't buying. However, as the interwined characters' stories were gradually developed , I became increasingly enthralled as the book progressed and the linkages exposed. I hope for Kingsolver continues this one on to the next generation, of the people that is. A little less coyote and birdcalls would not be missed. Overall, a really enjoyable novel.
Rating:
Summary: Could have been better....
Review: PRODIGAL SUMMER by Barbara Kingsolver is actually three stories in one novel. Each story revolves around a
different main character. Deanna Wolfe is the first story (Predators) and she works for the US Forest Service, living alone in the mountains in south Appalachia. Her disdain for most people keeps her isolated up in the mountains, where she happily observes nature at its finest. Early on in her story, she encounters Eddie Bondo, a man of mystery travelling through the mountains, and despite her attitudes towards people in general, she falls for him. The second story (Moths) is centered around Lusa Landowski, married into the Widener family and the wife (and soon to be widow) of Cole, the beloved son and brother of this large clan. Their lives center on farm living, and although Lusa's dream as a child was to live on the land, she finds little happiness living on the farm with Cole. The third story (Chestnuts) centers around Garnett, an elderly man who has lived in Zebulon county for decades, but is now a widower and is constantly battling it out with his next door neighbor Nannie Rawley. He thinks she's nuts, and she sees him as an old fart. The problem I had with this book was that there didnt seem to be any remote connection between the three stories, except for the main theme of ecology and "preseravation of this earth". I am a big supporter of ecological causes, but not to the extent where it is being shoved down my throat in a preachy tone. Although I soon came to love the character of Lusa and her fellow Wideners, I could not warm up to Deanna Wolfe, who seemed to have no heart and was written as a very cold person. Her hatred and disdain for most people, I think, is what irritated me the most. Her dialogues with Eddie sounded to me like a text book dissertation, not true conversations held by someone in her field. I enjoyed the Garnett and Nannie wars, as I would like to call them, but they too weren't too likeable in the beginning. Although by the end of the book the author ties up loose ends and shows how all three characters are connected in some way, I found this book was merely a means to preach about the ecology, not to tell a story. I think I would have enjoyed this book more if she had left Deanna's story out, and focused more on Garnett and Lusa's story. PRODIGAL SUMMER was my third Barbara Kingsolver book (Poisonwood Bible and The Bean Trees being my first two) so I had been looking forward to reading this book. Unfortunately, it did not meet my expectations and so I only gave it 3 stars.
Rating: 
Summary: Read this book!
Review: This is one book I didn't want to end. Even after I placed the finished book on my bookshelf, I found myself wanting to go and pick it up again. The characters are so easy to believe and now I want to know what happens to them. I want to spend more of my life with them, reading about them.
Rating:
Summary: best novel I read in 2001
Review: As in The Poisonwood Bible, Barbara Kingsolver tells Prodigal Summer from multiple points of view, but the heart and soul of this novel were to me more reminiscent of her earlier works (The Bean Trees, Animal Dreams, & Pigs in Heaven). She is becoming more and more refined at incorporating scientific sophistication into her vivid prose, giving her the rare ability to convey the lessons of ecology in an intelligent yet personal and deeply moving story. She masterfully and subtly interweaves her principles' stories until the end, when the implicit interconnectedness of her world draws the reader to unspoken conclusions. Kingsolver breathes life into an intricate ecosystem that includes flora, fauna, and human inhabitants whose stories are equally important to the unfolding tale. I have never read another novel that so successfully carried its message (in this case, ecological responsibility) without becoming stiff, condescending, or boring. It is an interesting and passionate story on all levels. And it will make you think twice before squishing spiders.
Rating: 
Summary: Three short stories
Review: This book was three short stories. The characters from each of the stories did not interact with the others. I kept hoping that eventually everyone would tie together but, no, the ending was extremely disappointing and ruined the rest of the book for me.
|
