My group has chosen to read The Bean Trees by Barbara Kingsolver. To me, this novel has been quite refreshing. After reading the graphic pages of Life of Pi, this novel is exceedingly more gentle and relatable. The story begins with two young "moms" whose lives have become scrambled and confusing in a very short amount of time. One woman, Lou Ann, had just recently had a baby and her husband left her to support her child on her own. She lived in Tucson, Arizona, across the street from Jesus is Lord Used Tires.
Taylor Greer, a young girl from Kentucky, had recently been burdened with a child on her stop on an Indian reservation. The child seems to have been abused and is extremely unresponsive. Eventually, the two of them land in Tucson at the doorstep of Jesus is Lord Used Tires. They stay in a small motel for a while, until they find a renting add posted in the paper. Coincidentally it had been posted by Lou Ann. Taylor and Turtle, the child, answer the ad and seek out Lou Ann and her sweet son, Dwayne Ray. They decide to become roomates and the two families mesh into one, beginning to sustain eachother. I’ve really grown to like this book. Even though most of the things the women are going through, I’ve never experienced, I still feel empathy for them. I really enjoy reading novels about people’s lives. It seems to me all the hardships that Lou Ann and Taylor go through now will build them and character and they will be strong women in the future.
Kingsolver also illustrates the importance of friendship. This is a topic I can most definitely relate to. As Lou Ann and Taylor grow closer and build a strong trust in one another, they begin to see things differently. They recognize their hardships but they also find happiness in their struggles because they are tackling them right alongside one another.
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