Rating: 
Summary: A role model for independent thought.
Review: As an author (Embracing Fear, HarperSanFrancisco), as a psychotherapist, as a citizen of the United States of America, and as a citizen of the world, I applaud this brilliant collection of essays. Ms. Kingsolver writes simultaneously from the mind and heart, consequently inspiring the reader to think and feel about a variety of important things, from bookstores to global politics. And she entertains us all along the way. With this book Barbara Kingsolver has for me become a new role model for the importance of independent thinking. Buy several copies, pass them out to your friends, and have some wonderful conversations on somebody's front porch.
Rating:
Summary: Small Wonder: Who We Are, Where We Came From
Review: It was a pleasure reading "Small Wonder" by Barbara Kingsolver. It's a book of insightful essays that tells us, as Americans, "WHO WE ARE". I highly recommend this book that is truly well done. I also recommend "West Point: ... A Book Developed From The Readings And Writings Of Thomas Jefferson" by Norman Thomas Remick. It's like an epic of America put in simple language that tells us, as Americans, "WHERE WE CAME FROM". A good companion book to Barbara Kingsolver's "Small Wonder".
Rating:
Summary: Small wonders happen here.
Review: "Maybe life doesn't get any better than this, or any worse" Barbara Kingsolver observes in one of the twenty-three essays collected here, "and what we get is just what we're willing to find: small wonders, where they grow" (p. 264). Although Kingsolver is better known for her fiction (THE POISONWOOD BIBLE, PRODIGAL SUMMER), I am partial to her essays (HIGH TIDE IN TUCSON). Kingsolver began this latest collection on September 12, 2001, the day after the World Trade Center terrorist attack (p. xiii). "Compiling this book quickly in the strange, awful time that dawned on us last September became for me a way of surviving that time," she writes in the book's Foreward, "and in the process I reopened in my own veins the intimate connection between the will to survive and the need to feel useful to something or someone beyond myself. In fact, that is a theme that runs throuugh the book" (p. xv). Kingsolver's book is dedicated to "every citizen of my country who has suffered bereavement with honor, trepidation without panic, and the insult of fundamentalist condemnation without succumbing to similar thinking in turn. We may yet show the world we are worth our salt" (p. xvi). Kingsolver has a talent for writing life-affirming essays. For her, "God is in the details, the completely unnecessary miracles sometimes tossed up as stars to guide us" (p. 6). We find her taking heart in "a persistent river, a forest on the edge of night, the religion in a seed, the startle of wingbeats when a spark of red life flies against all reason out of the darkness. One child, one bear" (p. 21). Rooted in the "small wonders" of daily life and full of hope, her essays ultimately touch the canopy of life's bigger questions. Kingsolver's diverse subjects include September 11th; democracy ("the majority rules so hard; we seem bent on dividing all things into a contest of Win and Lose, and declaring that the Losers are losers," p. 18); the Grand Canyon ("that vermillion abyss attenuates humanity to quieter internal rhythms," p. 22); mothers and daughters; tv, the "one-eyed monster;" raising chickens; Columbine ("in a society that embraces violence, this is what 'our way of life' has come to mean," p. 182); genetic engineering ("I'm a scientist who thinks who thinks it wise to enter the doors of creation not with a lion tamer's whip and chair, but with the reverence humankind has traditionally summoned for entering places of worship: a temple, a mosque, or a cathedral," p. 108); the homeless ("their presence is a pure, naked shame upon us all," p. 198); the "demise" of independent bookstores; short stories ("A good short story cannot be simply Lit Lite. It should pull off the successful execution of large truths delivered in tight spaces," p. 212); writing poetry ("poems fall not from a tree, really, but from the richly pollinated boughs of an ordinary life, buzzing as lives do, with clamor and glory," p. 231); the San Pedro River (near my childhood home in Southern Arizona); and even the "colorful" art exhibit "pinned to a clothes line" here in Boulder (my new home) that recently made national news (p. 157). This collection will appeal to anyone longing for hope after September 11th, or to anyone who cares about the times we're going through. Barbara Kingsolver is a national treasure, and in these of essays she delivers exactly what she promises: small wonders. G. Merritt
Rating:
Summary: She does it again
Review: Barbara Kingsolver does it again. She manages to write beautiful, heartbreaking, and sometimes funny essays on her daughter raising chickens, biology, growing her own food, writing a "sexy" novel, the demise of independent bookstores, and the heartbreak of September 11th. You might not always agree with Ms. Kingsolver, but by God, you'll be glad she's around to tell her truth.
Rating: 
Summary: A Not-So-Tasty Organic Stew
Review: Barbara Kingsolver is an excellent writer and I have no trouble with anyone espousing her political views. It is her right as it is anyone else's. I admire her courage of conviction and many of the practices in her life. That said, however, I did find it a little hard to swallow the not-so-subtle lectures from an environmentalist who writes books that kill trees, lives in Tucson (aren't the organic gardens she writes of so glowingly all irrigated? How is that such a resource savings?), maintains two homes, jets around the world, and lives the way she chooses, not the way she has to. But then, I have always been a big fan of ironies. Another irony that struck me was the unpleasant whiff of commercialism in packaging a collection of essays that seemed to capitalize on the events of 9-11 from someone who writes so eloquently about the soul-destroying aspects of rampant commercialism. While her writing is always a pleasure, her views seemed a tad simplistic at times. The 9-11 attacks were caused by global warming and multinational corporations -- nothing about US policies in the Middle East, religious fanaticism, and bad foreign policy in general. Homelessness can be solved by seeing that everyone has a home. (Having worked with several homeless people, I can testify that the solutions are just a tad more complicated than that.) I was genuinely confused by her views on trade. If I buy food even from other parts of the United States is that a Bad Thing or a Good Thing? She points out that much of our food travels a long way to get to us -- conveniently ignoring the fact that people have sought goods from other lands for millenia -- but justifies her coffee because it is shade grown; I guess that cancels out the distance it is transported and the middlemen who also profit. And she rightly criticizes the big corporations who profit by using others and destroying land, but has nothing to say about the poor people in other lands who are using their little bit of commerce to feed their families. She describes an encounter with several teachers who were nervous and afraid to come to work the day after the Columbine shootings. She is able to calm these silly gooses by pointing out that they are no more likely to die than any other day. But she herself is upset at 9-11, even though she doesn't live anywhere near the attacks, lost no one, and has no television. It just seems as though her feelings are genuine but others are shallow. A final, personal quibble: I'd love to read something from a Southerner who doesn't have to point out that They Have Standards. I suppose that her comment about not being able to have company without doing some tidying because she is a Southerner was meant to be a little self-deprecatory humor, but the implication from her and others who keep doing this is that Other Folks are comfortable just sitting around in their underwear and throwing more trash onto the carpet. Believe it or not, other folks tidy up and invite people to dinner, can you imagine?
Rating:
Summary: A book for everyone
Review: I learned more from Barbara Kingsolver's "Small Wonder" than I have
from any single book in a very long time, and think it ought to be
required reading in every high school, college, and university
classroom and, if life were just, top all the bestseller lists.
Kingsolver, a biologist whose scientific understanding of biology
is deep and passionate, makes available to us clear and compelling
answers to questions like, "Why is it worth worrying about genetic
engineering of crops?" and, "What does sustainable agriculture and
living mean, and why is it important to our survival as a species?"
I love Kingsolver's novels, even though I find them preachy at
times, but these essays combine persuasion and fine writing to
produce what I think is her best book yet.
Rating:
Summary: Small wonder indeed
Review: Before I can say anything else about this book I much point out what I found to be the most startling aspect of Small Wonder... Kingsolver invokes the imagery of 9/11 so frequently and as the justification for so many different things I felt like I was watching a Bush press conference. I know we are suppose to tiptoe around when speaking about mass homicides so I am not sure if this is political correct to say but... Kingsolver was a better writer before 9/11 than after. Obsession and passion are one thing but too often she just settles for trite instead as in the laughable line "If I got to make just one law, it would be that the men who make the decisions to drop bombs would first, every time, have to spend one whole day taking care of a baby."
Speaking of men dropping bombs... I was also extremely surprised by Kingsolver's frequent reinforcements of gender serotypes. While on the one had she briefly mentions wanting to instill in her young daughter what she could be a doctor or whatever she wanted to be on the other she so often associates war and other vices with men and home and hearth with women. "When the going gets tough, seems like men reach for a weapon and women look in the pantry." Although I don't really understand the point she was trying to make there I do understand it enough to know that it represents a sexism I was surprised to find Kingsolver support frequently.
Another big turn off for this book is that in many of the essays a lecturing tone is adopted and in the marketplace of idea nothing will make me roll my eyes at you quicker than an attitude of superiority. Another big stumbling block that Kingsolver must overcome in future works if she wasn't to have a greater impact is that although she does have a point she is trying to make (well, in most of her pieces anyways) she is often disorganized in presenting it; one word - outline!
While the previous flaws apply to her work as a whole a much more narrow problem only present in one or two of the essays but yet infuriating to me is that she sometimes invokes high minded principles in ways that only the white, wealthy and well fed can. In particular I am speaking of her stance on genetically modified foods. While yes there are a number of important unresolved questions regarding such foods (and genetic engineering in general) what cannot be denied is the increased food yields that such crops have produced. For a well fed suburbanite to implore others to starve for her idyllic beliefs almost caused me to put away the book for good but I am glad I got through the rest of it.
While the wonders here are in fact small... and few there are still a few exceptions. `Letter to a Daughter at Thirteen,' `And Our Flag Was Still There' and `Going to Japan' were all good - not good enough to redeem the book as a whole but still good.
Rating: 
Summary: My Review From Southwest BookViews Summer 2002
Review: After Barbara Kingsolver accumulated a number of editorial pieces in response to the September 11 attacks, friends pointed out that she had a book in the making. As she writes in her forward, "These and other essays that began as short op-ed or magazine pieces inhaled and expanded to new girths when I offered them the chance to appear in a book."
Small Wonder is novelist Kingsolver's second collection of essays following High Tide in Tucson published in 1995. This volume consists of twenty-three thoughtful (and thought-provoking) works on a variety of subjects including the value of short stories and poetry, why television is not watched in her household, homelessness, culture shock in Japan, and the dangers of genetic engineering.
Conservatives and right-wingers,according to Kingsolver, seem to consider her political views naïve and wrong-headed. In "Small Wonder" she answers, "I find it insufferable to bear silent witness to the flesh-and-bone devastations of war, and bitterly painful to be cast sometimes as a traitor to the homeland I love, simply because I raise questions."
Still, others (myself included) view her as valiant for speaking out about what she believes. I may not always agree with Kingsolver's views, but I always enjoy reading them and respect her for raising hard questions Americans simply do not want to face. "...Everybody in the world, Turkestanis included, already knows global warming is the most important news on every possible agenda-except here in the United States, where that info has been successfully suppressed," she asserts in "The One-Eyed Monster, and Why I Don't Let Him In."
She seems to perceive her role as a canary in the coal mine of the world we will pass down to our grandchildren. "This is the lot I was cast, to sit here on this sharp, jagged point between two centuries when so much of everything hangs in the balance." Issuing a wake-up call to those readers who may otherwise be unaware of the serious issues facing the globe, she presents them in as pleasant and entertaining a manner as possible.
The first half of this collection may feel more didactic than Kingsolver's earlier works. Much of her time and energy in these first works is taken up with issues of conservation, environmentalism, biodiversity and "irresponsible agriculture." With the repetition of environmental themes the reader may feel as if they are being hammered over the head as the author drives home her point.
The title piece and "Saying Grace," especially, don't flow well, feeling forced. Don't let that daunt you. "Knowing our Place," about her sense of where she lives and works, and "The Patience of a Saint," co-authored with husband Steven Hopp, exploring the endangered San Pedro River, are two less heavy-handed works in this section.
The last half of this volume is simply a joy. "Marking a Passage" is an elegy to the closing of the Book Mark, Tucson's landmark independent bookstore. The companion pieces of "Letter to a Daughter at Thirteen" and the stunning "Letter to My Mother" are achingly heartfelt Kingsolver classics. She creates fluid and lyrical prose that draws the reader into her world, assembling words more gracefully than most accomplished writers.
Take this passage from "Setting Free the Crabs" for example: "The deliberate, monotonous call and response of the waves-assail, retreat-could have held me here forever in a sunlight that felt languid as warm honey on my skin." I am always amazed, amused, enlightened and enthralled by her words and am engrossed by her perspective on the human condition. This collection is no exception.
My initial reading of Barbara Kingsolver was shortly after the publication of her debut novel The Bean Trees. That book was forced into my I-don't-read-fiction hands by a number of my Haunted Bookshop coworkers. Until then I did not know writing could be so eloquent. My devotion for Kingsolver and her work has not waned. I have become a champion of her words, recommending them to anyone who will listen.
Kingsolver also is a grand ambassador of Tucson and Southern Arizona, shining an inspiring light on the desert Southwest. Tucsonans are mighty proud to call her one of their own: she is a genuinely warm, caring and generous individual. I have seen her patiently sign books and chat with her fans for hours on end, treating the very last person at the table with the same cheerfulness and gratitude as the first to stand in line.
In Small Wonder it is evident she cares more about the world than herself. Kingsolver is a person (and writer) I strive to be more like. She thinks globally and acts locally. Some of her readers, upon meeting her in person, have simply said, "Thank you. Keep writing." I add my voice to that chorus.
Rating:
Summary: Not as good as her fictional work
Review: I have read all of Kingsolver's fiction and am a big fan; however, I found these essays preachy and even irritating. Her voice is just a little too pious and seems to assume her audience is made up of clueless shopaholic shell-collecting fast food-chomping dimwits. In attempting to create parables out of "State of the World 2001" issues, she made broad and compelling problems seem almost pedantic. Her usual originality, insightfulness, and clever wit does not come through. I was disappointed.
Rating: 
Summary: earth friendly and liberal
Review: "With this book, you will either hate her or love her." So my AP English teacher told me as we began Small Wonders. I think I'm somewhere in between. I can't argue that Kingsolver isn't a good writer-she's a great one. The diction, tone, and syntax of her essays keep her ideas flowing and engaging. Kingsolver is very liberal and passionate in her views of the world-ranging from the environment to politics. You can tell she's very family-oriented and towards a peaceful eco-friendly world for all. Every single essay includes some kind of political element. For instance, "Stealing Apples" begins about the poetry and its appreciation however, right smack dab in the middle, she goes on about refugees from third world countries and how "we live in a place where north meets south and many people are running for their lives, while many others rest easy with the embarrassments of privileged." Well, I'm ever so sorry that I don't live in poverty. Much of her essays will make you feel guilty of how you conduct your own life.
Yet, I still enjoyed the book because with the way she writes, you feel as if she's talking to you personally. She begins each essay with an anecdote that weaves itself in with the essay topic. I found her humorous at times. For example, when describing the wastes of consumerism she reports that every quarter pound of hamburger costs "100 gallons of water, 1.2 pounds of grain, a cup of gasoline, greenhouse-gas emissions equivalent to those produced by a six-mile drive in you average car, and the loss of 1.25 pounds of topsoil, every inch of which took five hundred years for microbes and earthworms to build." She then comments, "If I were a cow, right here is where I'd go mad." I liked how that was done because not only was it descriptively vivid but honest. I recommend this book for environmentalists and the open-minded--you'll appreciate this book much better if you are either one.
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