'I have been afraid of putting air in a tyre ever since I saw a tractor tyre blow up and throw Newt Hardbine's father over the top of the Standard Oil sign.' With a first line like that, great things must follow.
The Bean Trees (1988)
They almost didn't: Kingsolver wrote her first book while pregnant with her first child, and considered tossing it in the trash in a frenzy of pre-birth cleaning. Luckily she sent it to an agent in New York instead.
Animal, Vegetable, Miracle(2007)
Two generations ago every family knew how to live off the land. How did we forget so much so quickly? Kingsolver and her family lived for a year entirely on what they could grow themselves or source locally. It's an eye-opener.
The Lacuna (2009)
'I am Harrison Shepherd.' Kingsolver's admission that she is most like her only male protagonist is not so surprising: Harrison can't find his personal pronoun, his sense of self, until he becomes a writer. It's a deep book with ambitious themes. Plus Frida Kahlo, Diego Rivera and Lev Trotsky have cameo roles.
Just R20 for the first month. Support independent journalism by subscribing to our digital news package. 
