Life In The Congo…No, Thank You

Our book club recently read, The Poisonwood Bible by Barbara Kingsolver.  Let me tell ya, I’ve never wanted so badly to crawl into a book and hit one of the characters in the face…with a cactus.  I’ve always said that if a book doesn’t leave you with some kind of emotion then, it wasn’t all that great.  Walking away from a book in tears or ready to throw a fit, now those books stick with you forever.

The story is told through the wife of a Southern Baptist preacher and her 4 daughters in rotating chapters.  It began with the family learning they are leaving their Georgia home and going to live in a tiny village in the Belgian Congo in the 60’s.  Nathan Price has no narration in the book but his actions speak volumes.  Once there, the family is thrown into a world they’ve never known.  The country falls steadily into turmoil and Nathan refuses to leave and seek safety for his family.

There are parts of the story that you just want to roll your eyes at and others that you are wiping away tears.  Get It.  Read It.  The End.

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4 thoughts on “Life In The Congo…No, Thank You

  1. I read this a long time ago and it’s stuck with me ever since. What got me more than anything was the Congo woman telling the preacher how to garden. There he was thinking he could educate her but she knew better. She was dirt poor, had lost both legs and un-schooled but she was far wiser than the interloper jerk.

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  2. Thanks for the fallow and guess what my book club read it also.. and what a strange and wonderful story. I guess it will not become a missionary any time soon if it involves snakes and bugs and so much hot dry land. Hope to fallow along too thanks again JoLynn aka mountain mama

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