The Poisonwood Bible - Barbara Kingsolver ----------------- 3 Stars

I had never read a Barbara Kingsolver book until I took on Demon Copperhead (review here) a couple of summers ago. I heard some good things about that book and, of course, Kingsolver is quite a name in fiction. I really enjoyed Demon Copperhead, and I knew that The Poisonwood Bible is probably her most famous book. While I did, ultimately, enjoy The Poisionwood Bible, I didn't find it as entertaining and enjoyable as the book I read a couple of years ago.

I also add the word "ultimately" above, as I felt this book really started slowly. For me, it was such a slow start that I almost considered quitting. Coming in at nearly 600 pages, it's not a short or easy read. And, I found the first, nearly 200 pages, to be a pretty excruciating beginning. Sure, it was great getting to know the main characters and understanding some of their motives and interest. However, most of the first quarter to third of the book is setting the stage of their lives in Africa. While there were some interesting stories and useful details included about a life very different than the one I am used to, there was really very little excitement or conflict.

Thankfully, the book starting picking up the pace and offered some much more interesting plot turns and action as it continued. I found myself fascinated in learning more about the history of the Congo (the setting for most of the novel). It was exciting to learn that so much of the story was based on real life events and people. The short biography Kingsolver offered of her own childhood growing up in Africa also made the book more appealing.

Finally, I also enjoyed that much of the final quarter was sharing the future lives of the main characters over multiple decades. I always appreciate learning how characters end up and what their future ends up becoming. However, many books tend to not spend the time offering a glimpse of the future. 

The biggest drawbacks for me, besides the very slow start was simply the difficult I had connecting with the characters. While quite different from me and offering a quite varied perspective on the world, most of the novel centered on the female characters and their lives growing up in war-torn Africa. I also struggled with some of Kingsolver's writing style. While I appreciated her well written narratives, some of the descriptions of events, scenery, etc. were too descriptive for me, as I began to lose interest in some of her writing.

On the whole, I see why this book was so popular and was a Pulitzer finalist. It's a fine story, well written and taking on some serious issues of the world and being human. While this may be the last Kingsolver book for me, I remain open to seeing what might strike me of interest in the future.

 

Trapped!: The Story of Floyd Collins – Robert Murray and Roger W. Brucker --------------- 4.5 Stars

Earlier this year I visited Mammoth Cave National Park in western Kentucky. Not really something I had planned much but really enjoyed it once there. I spent a few hours walking about 4 miles of the currently discovered 426 miles (and growing!) cave system. While there I learned about the fascinating story about Floyd Collins. I was so intrigued by it, I looked to see if there was a book about him. As luck would have it there are a few but one is amazing, at least in my opinion!

Trapped!: The Story of Floyd Collins was originally written in 1979 to tell the story of the rescue attempt of Floyd Collins in 1925. If you were like me, you know nothing about this story. A bit of background: there are hundreds of miles of continuous cave in western Kentucky. In the 1920s, explorers were trying to map and find parts of it. Collins, thinking he could get rich by finding undiscovered areas, spend much of this time searching underground. Unfortunately, while out on an expedition, he was moving through a very tight passage and got stuck. It led to a 3 week adventure that was both unexpected and captivating.  Ultimately, this story became the biggest in the world. Yes, you read that correctly, the rescue attempt for Floyd Collins became sensational and updated daily on every newspaper in the world.

When I learned how famous this event was, I really didn't understand why. But, as I spent more time learning about it, it made more and more sense. To help explain it further, here's a paragraph from the book that summarizes far better than I would:

As you can probably infer from what I've shared so far, there are a couple of reasons I enjoyed this book so much. First, I think my visit to the cave really helped me picture and better understand what it's like exploring a cave (something I had never considered previous to this visit). This helped me connect far more deeply with the story. Second, it's truly an incredible story and there's a reason it became the biggest one in the world.  Themes like - man vs. nature, greed and exploitation, heroism, isolation, and the power of media - were all major parts of the story. Third, I also love how the story was told. It was a fascinating mix of historical reporting, journalism, an amazing storytelling.

4.5 stars is a very high rating (I've only had five - 4.5 star books and seven - 5 star books in the 16 years I've had this blog). I'm also not foolish to believe that many others would not have a 4 1/2 star rating for this book (however, 4.5 stars is the net average on Amazon for the 88 people who reviewed it). I would imagine others might still find the story incredible, but will find the book slow in some parts and probably far too detailed. Either way, I urge you to take it or at least read the articles about it as the story truly is incredible and worth learning about.