Unsheltered

Barbara Kingsolver's latest, Unsheltered, is enormously popular. In other words, it was impossible to get from the library. Thankfully I have a kind neighbor and she loaned me her Kindle with the e-book on it.

The thing that I disliked most about the novel was probably one of the things that I thought the author did best. She nailed the voice of the historical period even though that's what made the book so tedious. It felt like work to read the historical parts and the language was difficult to get through and almost too scientific most of the time.

I was made curious enough about the history of Vineland, NJ, but not curious to break from my reading to actually do any research. I have since done a quick google search and apparently most of what was written in the book about Vineland was historically accurate. It appears that Vineland is a suburb of Philadelphia, although created to be its own very distinct utopia. Normally, I feel a connection to books that are set in locations that I feel connected to. I lived in New Jersey for almost 30 years, and I lived in Philadelphia for 4, but I didn't feel like I was reading about anywhere that felt like "home," except perhaps when Willa took Nick to the doctor and they were in some university parking lot in Philadelphia.

What's the book about? It's about two different families living in the same falling apart house in Vineland, New Jersey over a hundred years apart. Their stories are told in alternating chapters. The main characters in each of the families likens their lives to the condition of the house. Falling apart. Neither family can afford to do the required repairs to the house. Outside the families, their communities are falling apart.

The book is extremely political and it's quite clear that Kingsolver is trying to get her message across. This is an issue-filled novel. Consumerism, capitalism, generational differences, gender differences, defining utopia. It's a commentary about our judicial system, our healthcare system. It covers Darwinism vs Creationism. If I sat here long enough, I could probably come up with a few more issues that Kingsolver throws into the mix.

I would personally not recommend this book to someone reading a the book independently. But I would definitely recommend the book as a potential book club read. I believe these pages give so much to talk about and I'm really looking forward to discuss this with my community book club later this afternoon.

P.S. Lots of members of my book club felt as I felt. Interesting parallel storylines but quite tedious to read. Lots of great things to talk about.