I am in awe of The Poisonwood Bible

I was left feeling a profound sense of injustice, not just for the book’s characters, but for Africa and every land raped and pillaged by colonisers. At first the author showed parallels between Christianity and African spirituality/animism, but in the end I felt the inferior creature; having been robbed of my primitive connection to Spirit, being a product of thousands of years of indoctrination by the patriarchy. How resilient we would all be as people and as nations if we just believed in the concept of Muntu as the Congolese people do; that we are immortal and all connected; and that we only temporarily occupy this body, this story.

I love this book with all my heart. So beautifully structured and each character given justice. I cannot fault it all (not that I’m an expert on literature) but after reading the last page and closing the book, I felt privileged to have read a true masterpiece.

Now the question is, what Barbara Kingslover book should I read next?