Pigs in Heaven
by Barbara Kingsolver
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Read in January, 2001
PIGS IN HEAVEN is the sequel to Barbara Kingsolver's book THE BEAN TREES. The novel continues the story of the Cherokee child named "Turtle" and her adoptive mother Taylor Greer. In this sequel, we find Turtle and Taylor living together in Tucson along with Taylor's boyfriend, a life that is not quite what would be called the most perfect of environments. They live in poverty, barely making ends meet. Although Taylor does her best, her income is limited, but she gives Turtle a lot of l...more
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Read in March, 2008
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Read in September, 2008
I don't know how I might have reacted differently to this book if I read it before becoming a mother--but from the beginning it sucked me in emotionally. I had also read and loved The Bean Trees but I "felt" this book much more deeply. I was also captivated by the descriptions of what life is like on the Cherokee Nation--although I don't think it was sugarcoated, it was a more uplifting portrayal of reservation life than what I've read in novels by Louise Erdrich, and shared mor...more
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Read in April, 2007
Another book I read last year, and this one I really loved. It is actually the sequel to Barbara Kingsolver's book The Bean Trees, but I read this without having read the first book and liked it anyway. (The only other Kingsolver I've read so far is The Poisonwood Bible, and this is much different). It follows the story of a 6-year-old Cherokee girl who had been adopted by a white woman. A lawyer finds out that the adoption wasn't all above-board and starts tracking them down in order to retu...more
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Read in June, 2007
I'm a big fan of Barbara Kingsolver. As usual, this is many intertwined stories in one. This centers on the question of what defines a family? A horribly abused and orphaned Cherokee child is given to a stranger passing through a parking lot, and years later, the adoption is called into question. The Cherokee Nation must approve all adoptions of Cherokee children to non-Cherokee parents. So who's right? The adoptive mother who has loved and healed this child, or the nation that understands...more
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Read in August, 2008
Although I only found out this was the sequel to The Bean Trees after I was about 40 pages into it--I had no trouble following the story and the characters and thought it was a lovely book. The only other book by Kingsolver I have read is The Poisonwood Bible. I read it so long ago that I hardly remember a thing, but reading Pigs in Heaven made me remember what is so attractive about her writing--it is so true and so beautiful. I thought this was a great story with INCREDIBLE characters--would d...more
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Read in March, 2008
Barbara Kingsolver sometimes reminds me of a more tame, female version of Tom Robbins. Not so much with Prodigal Summer, but definitely with this book, as well as, Animal Dreams (a great read!) This book takes the reader on the tumultuous journey of a mother who will do just about anything to keep her adopted Cherokee daughter by her side. That is, until she realizes that this little girl might need something more that she is able to give her. The text delves a bit into the often misundersto...more
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Had I read this on its own, it would probably have gotten three stars. But as a sequel to The Bean Trees, I was very disappointed in it. It continues the story of Turtle and Taylor, but this time they're on the run from the Cherokee nation. The Cherokee have noticed that Turtle is being raised by someone NOT Cherokee, and they apparently have laws about that kind of thing. Taylor's actions don't seem real. I didn't get lost in this book; I was aware the entire time that this was just...more
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This was the first Barbara Kingsolver I ever read. I had never heard of her, and I was 14, when the public library was having a discard sale. I liked the description on the back, so I picked it up. Maybe this started my love of Kingsolver... there's a good chance that's true. I think what really drew me in at that point was the story of a mother and a child who were trying to find themselves - and felt somewhat lost. I think I was feeling that way when I was 14 - I think most people feel lost wh...more
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Read in January, 2008
ugh. i kept wanting this book to be brilliant, and it was sort of wavering here and there, but in the end it just tumbled into the pit of bad dialogue and hokey scenes. throw a good editor at this book and it could be great~ for now, i just couldn't get over all the little snags of corny, overwrought writing. i will say, though, that there are some little glimmers of really great stuff. sadly, just not enough to keep me going. i'm like a badger, in that sense. i'll chew through the wires of a ca...more
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Read in June, 2007
This book somehow lost its charm for me between my first reading about a decade ago and this past week. I generally love Kingsolver, but the well-intentioned happy endings of the book ring a little false. Once you have a stolen child, an illegal adoption, and falsified papers, no amount of love and understanding will completely disentangle you from trouble. Also, I felt the book fished for a lot of cheap laughs in a way that's usually absent from her other novels... a counterfeiting Barbie imper...more
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Read in March, 2008
recommended to Nina by:
Fr. Kriski
I did like the story as it was a fresh look at the Native American ongoing problem and also the history of the Cherokees. But what I really liked was the terrific way this author did metaphors. Read the first paragraph below then you must agree.I will say I loved her book, "The Poisonwood Bible." I did not like her book, "Animal Dreams." So you can't always tell if you like an author you will like all of her work. But, often you do.
"Women on their own run in Alic...more
"Women on their own run in Alic...more
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Read in August, 2008
recommended to cattywampus by:
my grandpa
Like all Kingsolver books i've read (most of them), this one is full of poetry. She addresses this heart-wrenching story with a somewhat light heart: she seems to see all the sadness of the characters' experience as part of their past, and leads them to new choices in accordance with their underlying way of seeing the world. Some of the scenes seem a bit idyllic or even campy, but the story as a whole wraps them up in just the right way. They are delightful right along with the witty, brooding, ...more
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Read in February, 2008
A good read. This is a sequel to The Bean Trees, but I wouldn't say it's necessary to read them in that order, only somewhat helpful. As with The Bean Trees, I very much enjoyed the main characters, but the plot only held my attention some of the time and the not-so-main characters hardly any of the time. I'm not sure why this is true of these two novels, as the other Kingsolver works I've read have bowled me over with fully-realized and engaging characters. I'm glad I read thi...more
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Read in January, 2007
After "The Poisonwood Bible," I was excited to read more Kingsolver. But, I didn't like this book nearly as much. It might have been because the themes did not strike the chord with me that "Poisonwood" did. However, I also thought the ending was not as satisfying. It really tied up all the loose ends, but it wasn't nearly as impactful the "Poisonwood" ending, which satisfied me in a very different way. It might not be fair to compare the novels -- but I was so in l...more
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Read in May, 2008
I loved the Bean Trees (its prequel), so I was excited to follow the characters into this book. This book again focuses on Native Americans and their way of life, of which I knew little before reading these books. The issue of this book is whether or not a Cherokee girl who was illegally adopted by a white woman should stay with that woman who is an excellent mother, or whether she should return to the Cherokee nation and learn about her heritage and be with her people. I didn't finish the book,...more
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Read in April, 2008
This book had an interesting storyline and, as could be predicted, everything turns out good in the end. The book deals with the validity of an adoption in which a white lady attempts to gain custody of a Cherokee child who was given to her one night. A Cherokee attorney learns of this invalid adoption after watching the mother/daughter combo on Oprah. The main body of the book describes how the mother changes her life in order to avoid the attorney, who wants to return the child to the Cherokee...more
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Read in January, 2008
This author I chose per a friends review of the author on Goodreads. Kingsolver has a writing style that conveys emotions and moods well. However, at times I found her writing could be a bit predictable. The relationship and definition of family, especially mothers and daughters, was a dominating theme throughout the story. I enjoyed the different settings that the characters spent chapters in as it reminded me of my own adventures across the country. In retrospect, I feel I should have read...more
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Read in November, 1996
I found this book in a charity shop in Scotland when I first moved there for a year of schooling. It buoyed me up through bouts of homesickness and loneliness, and will forever be my "comfort food" book. I find a lot to identify with in Taylor, and I think the books is very well written... if a bit too happy in the end - more of a 'get what you deserve' rather than 'get what you realistically would if you illegally adopted a child'. This books sums up what women's relationships and fam...more
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Read in May, 2008
The sequel to The Bean Trees. The story starts three years later, and you get to find out what ultimately happens to Taylor and Turtle and Taylor's mother Alice. A little longer and more complicated than The Bean Trees, but just as enjoyable to read. I love all the interesting, unique characters and the way she weaves all of their lives together.
I'm a contemporary woman, devoted to the single life, but I just might consider marrying a man who would do that to his television fo...more
I'm a contemporary woman, devoted to the single life, but I just might consider marrying a man who would do that to his television fo...more
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