Barbara Kingsolver Books

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Barbara Kingsolver is an American author and essayist that writes historical fiction and non-fiction. She was born in 1955 in Annapolis. The first few years of her life were spent in Carlisle, Kentucky. But then she moved to Congo at the age of seven because of her father’s work. He was a doctor and he worked, along with Barbara’s mother, in public health.

Life in Congo had its challenges. For instance, the family did not have access to running water or electricity. The author’s time in Congo eventually came to an end. A music scholarship got her into DePauw University in Greencastle, Indiana, and for a time, she pursued classical piano as a major.

It did not take her long to realize that the field couldn’t offer her the financial opportunities she desired. So she turned her attention to biology. As a young adult, when Barbara wasn’t studying, she was out making her opinions heard on important matters such as the Vietnam war.

After graduating with a Bachelor in Science, the writer studied Ecology and Evolutionary Biology at the University of Arizona. She started experimenting with writing during her university days.

At first, Barbara worked as a science writer for her university. Then she produced several cover stories for a local publication. This established Barbara as a freelance feature writer. She also wrote a short story that won a local contest.

After marrying her first husband (Joseph Hoffmann) in 1985, the family moved to Tenerife in the Canary Islands. Barbara Kingsolver’s first child, a daughter, was already born by this point. The move was necessitated by the author’s frustration over America’s involvement in the Gulf War.

Her first marriage ended in 1992. She married Steven Hopp, her second husband. in 1996. This marriage also produced a daughter. By this stage of her life, Barbara Kingsolver was already making headway as a published author.

Her first novel was titled ‘The Bean Trees’. It was published in 1988. She wrote it during her first pregnancy. She had insomnia, so she used the time to write the novel. She also wrote non-fiction works that were inspired by her life.

Every book she has written and published since 1993 has become a New York Times Bestseller. She finds her inspiration in the books she reads. Barbara did quite a bit of studying during her youth. But she never studied writing.

Everything she knows about writing she learned from reading. The author only reads books she would like to write. While some authors struggle to nurture the discipline required to sit down and write, Barbara has to fight to stop writing.

She has so many ideas in her head every morning that she cannot find peace until she sits down and puts them on paper. She doesn’t write every day because she has so many chores to do. Most of these chores are related to her publishing career. She relies heavily on Judy Carmicheal, her assistant who does what she can to create openings in Barbara’s schedule that she can use to write.

Barbara Kingsolver Awards

The author has received Baileys Women’s Prize for Fiction, Oprah’s Book Club, Pulitzer Prize for Fiction, PEN/Faulkner, and International IMPAC Dublin Literary Award nominations. She has won the Orange Prize for Fiction and the Los Angeles Times Book Prize.

Best Barbara Kingsolver Books

The author has been commended for writing books that make historical events interesting to modern readers, with some of the best titles in her bibliography including:

Poisonwood Bible: Nathan Price was a passionate evangelical Baptist who went to Congo in 1959 to make a difference. He took his wife and children with him along with everything they thought they might need. Nathan’s story is told by his wife and children in this book. They chronicle the hardships they encountered and the transformations they underwent.

The Bean Trees: Taylor Greer was once innocent. After growing up in rural Kentucky, all she wanted was to avoid pregnancy long enough to escape. Then her chance came and she found herself in a battered car on the road to a new life.

But things in Tuscon, Arizona are not quite what she expected. Already the mother of an American Indian child, she has to overcome numerous hurdles to make a home for herself.

When Does The Next Barbara Kingsolver book come out?

Barbara Kingsolver doesn't seem to have an upcoming book. Their newest book is Coyote's Wild Home and was released on November, 28th 2023. It is the newest book in the Barbara Kingsolver Children's Books.

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