Prodigal Summer

Great book about intertwining lives in Appalachia. I didn't love the first chapter but stuck with it. Barbara Kingsolver is just great at character development. A lot of characters in this book won me over with them and it's very satisfying how they all grow together. I'd recommend it if you're a fan of her writing in general or nature fiction.

3.5 stars

Let's get this out of the way upfront: this book isn't going to be to everyone's taste, and that's okay. Prodigal Summer is three intertwining stories in one, with three primary characters. Chapters are told from each of their perspectives, more or less alternately; they all take place in the same area and sometimes affect each other, but interactions between stories are strictly on the fringes.

This is not a book with a complex narrative. It concerns rural Zebulon County, which according to Wikipedia doesn't actually exist – that's okay, it's a stand-in for rural farming counties all over – and families who live in it, and their relationships with nature and with each other. The three perspectives belong to Deanna, a wildlife-loving park steward; Lusa, a city girl who married into a farming family before the narrative opens; and Garnett, a cantankerous old man in an ongoing row with his neighbor. My favorite was Lusa, my least favorite Deanna; I'm sorry to say my interest in Deanna never did grow much. The others I enjoyed steadily.

It's so difficult to know where to begin describing Prodigal Summer. It's about families, writ small, and ecology, writ large. The stories are simple, but affecting. The prose is thoroughly Kingsolver, richly written; one earlier reviewer described it as “a book to feel,” and I think that's a perfect description. The cover art is perfectly suited: this is a novel about abundant, exuberant life.

Perfect timing to finish this book just when the chill of fall begins! I really loved 2/3 of these stories, but Deanna's fell short. This is almost always a problem with media that has multiple stories, but it's worth it to weave a larger picture of this small Appalachian community.

I really liked this book. I found all 3 of its intertwined storylines really compelling, and I learned things about ecology to boot!

Short Review: a good intertwining story of three people in rural Kentucky that find the situations changed and their previous independence no longer appropriate. They now have to learn how to relate differently to those around them. Because it is Kingsolver there are all kinds of metaphors to do with the environment and evolution and natural selection and that all fits well with the story. But this is the most traditional story of the Kingsolver books i have read. I would almost call it literary romance, but that isn't really quite right. It is more of a book on starting over with romance being one of the options of how to start over.

My full review is on my blog at http://bookwi.se/prodigal-summer-by-barbara-kingsolver/

Great read!!

What a great story! Loved the characters and situations. The author weaves in the current battle between those who favour organic farming and those who don't understand the fuss, and so much more. A couple of love stories between unlikely characters add spice to a novel that covers a lot of ground.