Comments (36)

What did you think about this title?
1 to 25 of 36 items
Aug 01, 2023
I liked this book, one of her better ones. It moved at a good pace and had characters believable characters. Fast but good read.
Jun 06, 2023blue_dog_41158 rated this title 5 out of 5 stars
This was one of my favorite books I've read. I ended up reading it in one sitting, and loved the flow of the story. Each of the characters has such an interesting backstory, and the whole time I was reading I wanted to learn more about…
Apr 25, 2023MCC55 rated this title 3.5 out of 5 stars
A thoroughly warm, feel-good novel, I enjoyed this from start to finish. Light reading maybe (certainly compared to Poisonwood Bible), but it was a first novel and Kingsolver writes wonderful prose. Right now she is my favourite author.
Nov 17, 2021Super_Summer rated this title 4.5 out of 5 stars
The Bean Trees by Barbara Kingsolver is about Taylor Greer who grew up in Kentucky with goals of avoiding pregnancy and getting away. One day, she heads west and arrives in Tucson Arizona where she acquired an unexpected child, a three…
Jun 09, 2021
Bean Trees is a wholesome novel full of motherhood, family, and community. I enjoyed reading Bean Trees because of its heartfelt story and kindhearted characters. Within the novel, Taylor Greer, a Kentucky girl hoping to escape small-town…
Apr 26, 2021genepy rated this title 4 out of 5 stars
Full of witty and colourful metaphors expressing wisdom and critical views of society , this story will stay with you . The endearing characters are so vividly described you feel as if you know them or even would like to meet them in…
Feb 14, 2021ciyer9 rated this title 4.5 out of 5 stars
Barbara Kingsolver’s female-centered novel, The Bean Trees, was slightly dull for me in the beginning; however, as the book progressed, I started to like it more. Taylor, the main character, goes through a series of unpredictable events…
Jul 13, 2020suveen rated this title 4.5 out of 5 stars
Bean Trees The novel Bean Trees by Barbara Kingsolver is such a heart-touching book. It is the story about a woman names Taylor and her journey from her confining home in Kentucky. This journey is filled with ups and downs with…
Feb 25, 2020
Wonderful story. Yes, it took a few chapters for it to engage me, but the warmth of the place created made me feel near Turtle and Taylor. I loved the speech patterns; "I don't know how the good Lord packed so much guts into one little…
Nov 14, 2019dawdlibrarybooks rated this title 3 out of 5 stars
skimmed a lot.
JCLS_Ashland_Kristin
Jul 22, 2019JCLS_Ashland_Kristin rated this title 4.5 out of 5 stars
I really enjoy Kingsolver's strong female-centered stories. This one did not disappoint. While written about 30 years ago, it has some really current thematic material in the form of a Guatemalan immigration story.
Sep 28, 2018glotet rated this title 4 out of 5 stars
The story reflects in horrific truth what was actually unfolding under the Argentinian dictatorship in the 1970's. How courageous of the author to undertake in a first novel such a situation which also reflects the reality of challenges of…
Aug 26, 2018peacebenow rated this title 3.5 out of 5 stars
It took me a bit to get into the "Bean Trees" but by one third the of way through I was hooked. Tyler, Turtle and friends are out of the ordinary people on an journey not planned whom you soon become attached. Kingsolver's writing style…
Nov 15, 2017
Funny and touching and painful and affirming. Not a word is wasted in the writing in this novel. Kingsolver's use of language in story-telling is masterful. Her characters are real and flawed and lovable. The protagonist, Marietta…
Apr 21, 2016csrestall rated this title 3.5 out of 5 stars
I read this book as a novel study for one of my students it was better than I anticipated. I enjoyed the characters and story lines. I enjoyed seeing the characters develop from the beginning to end. It was a simple read and enjoyable.
kdwaynec
Apr 01, 2016
I picked this up a few years ago, needing 'anything' to read and found it to be much better than I had expected. Very funny in places and I'll try another by Kingsolver, maybe Pigs because it sounds like Part II
Nov 02, 2015lbarkema rated this title 3.5 out of 5 stars
This was a sweet story, no doubt. But there wasn't as much substance to it as I was hoping there would be after reading The Poisonwood Bible. I know this was her first novel as opposed to when she had developed her craft more in…
Jul 26, 2014lukasevansherman rated this title 3 out of 5 stars
Kinsgslover's first novel is good, but nowhere near her masterpiece, "The Posionwood Bible." Followed by "Pigs in Heaven."
Dec 12, 2013slarsen rated this title 4 out of 5 stars
I have yet to be disappointed with a Kingsolver book. Reading BEAN TREES was fun for me because I could relate to so much of Taylor's trip to maturity. Kingsolver seems to have the ability to pull you in and welcomes you to be a character…
Oct 25, 2013EPalmer2295 rated this title 5 out of 5 stars
This is one of my new all-time favorite books. Kingsolver writes in a way that I have never seen any other author do: she is able to mix the diction and structure of small-town, rural language with the most vast and eye opening…
shjohnso
Oct 25, 2013shjohnso rated this title 3.5 out of 5 stars
Interesting but not great
Aug 20, 2013
"First published 15 years ago, The Bean Trees was Barbara Kingsolver's first novel. It tells the story of a poor Kentucky woman determined to make a better life for herself. While headed west, Taylor is approached by a Cherokee woman, who…
Jul 05, 2013erinsnest rated this title 4 out of 5 stars
Well it was a toss up between this book and "The Help". Read a chapter from both, couldn't decide which was better, so went with this one first, as it was shorter! Started it June 30, 2013......July 4, almost finished, a great book and my…
Jun 28, 2013JCLBeckyC rated this title 4.5 out of 5 stars
Even though this novel was written over twenty years ago, its humanist theme is timeless, and its depiction of how our country treats outsiders is as relevant as ever. That Kingsolver has wrapped up such a serious message in the package of…
May 30, 2013breathedeeply rated this title 4.5 out of 5 stars
Loved this book. A bit different from the other Kingsolver novels I've read. All of the characters have rough edges and make, at times, unwise choices, but they are colorful, well developed, and you are pulling for them throughout the…