The Bean Trees: A Novel

Barbara Kingsolver

Mar 2009 · Sold by Harper Collins

About this eBook

“The Bean Trees is the work of a visionary. . . . It leaves you open-mouthed and smiling.”  — Los Angeles Times

A bestseller that has come to be regarded as an American classic, The Bean Trees is the novel that launched Barbara Kingsolver’s remarkable literary career.

It is the charming, engrossing tale of rural Kentucky native Taylor Greer, who only wants to get away from her roots and avoid getting pregnant. She succeeds, but inherits a three-year-old Native American girl named Turtle along the way, and together, from Oklahoma to Arizona, half-Cherokee Taylor and her charge search for a new life in the West. Hers is a story about love and friendship, abandonment and belonging, and the discovery of surprising resources in seemingly empty places.

This edition includes a P.S. section with additional insights from the author, background material, suggestions for further reading, and more.

Ratings and reviews

A friend gave me this book to read and she insisted that I read it right away. I was a little reluctant but I was glad I decided to give it a chance. It is a captivating story of a young outspoken girl and her life-changing road trip. It is written in a real-life way and keeps the reader interested with a colorful dialogue. I would recommend it to anyone who likes a good storyline and interesting word structure.

When people ask me what are a few of my favorite books, this is one that comes to mind. The writing is superb, the words are strung together so brilliantly that you can have a clear picture of everything happening. And lil turtle is able to warm anyones heart. This book has everything needed to be a true classic.

I love, love, love anything Barbara Kingsolver! So glad I came across this story as one I had not yet read. What a joy! Though her first novel, it resonates everything that is Kingsolver. All emotions, senses, feelings physical and non-physical, parts of us we did not know we had (nor have words for) are all on alert. I must re-read Pigs in Heaven..... Now!

About the author

Barbara Kingsolver is the author of ten bestselling works of fiction, including the novels Unsheltered, The Bean Trees, and The Poisonwood Bible, as well as books of poetry, essays, creative nonfiction, and Coyote’s Wild Home, a children’s book co-authored with Lily Kingsolver. She also collaborated with family members on the influential Animal, Vegetable, Miracle: A Year of Food Life. Kingsolver’s work has been translated into more than thirty languages and has earned a devoted readership at home and abroad. She is a member of the American Academy of Arts and Letters, and has received numerous awards and honors including the 2023 Pulitzer Prize for Fiction for her novel, Demon Copperhead, the National Humanities Medal, and most recently, the National Book Foundation's Medal for Distinguish Contribution to American Letters. She lives with her husband on a farm in southern Appalachia.