The Bean Trees

This book has yet to be read and reviewed by Wuthering Bites. Should we choose it, or lose it?

What You Said

Donna, 8/29/2005    8
I read this book because it was a requirement for all my freshman's summer reading. I enjoyed it. I liked how the character "Taylor" changed and matured throughout the book and found out what was really important in life. I am not sure my freshman would have enjoyed it because they do not have the life experiences we do.
Inspired food accompaniment:   veggies
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About Barbara Kingsolver

Barbara Kingsolver was born on April 8, 1955. She grew up "in the middle of an alfalfa field," in the part of eastern Kentucky that lies between the opulent horse farms and the impoverished coal fields. Barbara Kingsolver presently lives outside of Tucson with her husband, and her two daughters. When not writing or spending time with her family, Barbara gardens, cooks, hikes, works as an environmental activist and human-rights advocate, and plays hand drums and keyboards with her husband, guitarist, Steven Hopp.

Selected Works by Barbara Kingsolver

• Prodigal Summer
• The Poisonwood Bible
• Pigs in Heaven
• The Bean Trees
• Animal Dreams
• Small Wonder: Essays
• Homeland and Other Stories

From the Publisher

Clear-eyed and spirited, Taylor Greer grew up poor in rural Kentucky with the goals of avoiding pregnancy and getting away. But when she heads west with high hopes and a barely functional car, she meets the human condition head-on. By the time Taylor arrives in Tucson, Arizona, she has acquired a completely unexpected child, a three-year-old American Indian girl named Turtle, and must somehow come to terms with both motherhood and the necessity for putting down roots. Hers is a story about love and friendship, abandonment and belonging, and the discovery of surprising resources in apparently empty places.

Reading Group Guide

These questions and suggested topics are offered to enhance your discussion of this book.

• The Bean Trees deals with the theme of being an outsider. In what ways are various characters outsiders? What does this suggest about what it takes to be an insider? How does feeling like an outsider affect one's life?
• How and why do the characters change, especially Lou Ann, Taylor, and Turtle?
• In many ways, the novel is "the education of Taylor Greer." What does she learn about human suffering? about love?