Continuum Contemporaries will be a wonderful source of ideas and inspiration for members of book clubs and readings groups, as well as for literature students.The aim of the series is to give readers accessible and informative introductions to 30 of the most popular, most acclaimed, and most influential novels of recent years. A team of contemporary fiction scholars from both sides of the Atlantic has been assembled to provide a thorough and readable analysis of each of the novels in question. The books in the series will all follow the same structure:a biography of the novelist, including other works, influences, and, in some cases, an interview; a full-length study of the novel, drawing out the most important themes and ideas; a summary of how the novel was received upon publication; a summary of how the novel has performed since publication, including film or TV adaptations, literary prizes, etc.; a wide range of suggestions for further reading, including websites and discussion forums; and a list of questions for reading groups to discuss.
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"A brilliant idea—short, perceptive books which tell you what you need to know about some of the most vibrant and challenging writing around today—a bit like having a reading group in your pocket."—Ian Rankin
"Well written…The chapters that deal with the text are split into parts that deal with each section of the novel. These are not a critique of the work but more like a pleasant guided tour through territory that you have already visited alone?you know the area but are delighted to have things pointed out to you that you may have missed along the way….The forthcoming list is very impressive and well worth keeping an eye on." —NewBooks.mag
"The series comes as near to squaring various circles - popular / academic, 'good read' / 'classic Lit', novel / film of the book as any I know. And at best it goes a fair way towards reshuffling those categories and redrawing the boundaries. With the first volume, I was relieved. After two or three, I was hooked.
The books are invaluable for gathering out-of-the-way or ephemeral comment from TV and radio interviews and the web as well as from literary reviews.
Refreshingly upfront and up-to-date…
Given the space, there are remarkably balanced film/novel comparisons of the most well-known examples…
An important feature is the fully referenced bibliographies, including reviews and copious website addresses - the latter ranging from fanzines and authors' and publishers' own sites to academic discussion lists and online journals.
In method as in subject matter, these guides move freely on the interface between print culture and multimedia. Highly finished and pleasantly handleable as books in their own right, they gesture accommodatingly to both words and worlds beyond.
Taking the series as a whole, it also confirms two things: that narrative nowadays is generically highly hybrid and increasingly cross-media; and that an understanding of the processes of writing and reading 'contemporary classic' (or at least 'currently famous') fiction cannot be separated - yet must be distinguished - from the processes of making and marketing books and films."
— The Times Higher Education Supplement, May 31, 2002
"Well written…The chapters that deal with the text are split into parts that deal with each section of the novel. These are not a critique of the work but more like a pleasant guided tour through territory that you have already visited alone?you know the area but are delighted to have things pointed out to you that you may have missed along the way….The forthcoming list is very impressive and well worth keeping an eye on." —NewBooks.mag
"The series comes as near to squaring various circles - popular / academic, 'good read' / 'classic Lit', novel / film of the book as any I know. And at best it goes a fair way towards reshuffling those categories and redrawing the boundaries. With the first volume, I was relieved. After two or three, I was hooked.
The books are invaluable for gathering out-of-the-way or ephemeral comment from TV and radio interviews and the web as well as from literary reviews.
Refreshingly upfront and up-to-date…
Given the space, there are remarkably balanced film/novel comparisons of the most well-known examples…
An important feature is the fully referenced bibliographies, including reviews and copious website addresses - the latter ranging from fanzines and authors' and publishers' own sites to academic discussion lists and online journals.
In method as in subject matter, these guides move freely on the interface between print culture and multimedia. Highly finished and pleasantly handleable as books in their own right, they gesture accommodatingly to both words and worlds beyond.
Taking the series as a whole, it also confirms two things: that narrative nowadays is generically highly hybrid and increasingly cross-media; and that an understanding of the processes of writing and reading 'contemporary classic' (or at least 'currently famous') fiction cannot be separated - yet must be distinguished - from the processes of making and marketing books and films."
— The Times Higher Education Supplement, May 31, 2002
From the Publisher
This is an excellent guide to Barbara Kingsolver’s best-selling novel of 1998. It features a biography of the author, a full-length analysis of the novel, and a great deal more. If you’re studying this novel, reading it for your book club, or if you simply want to know more about it, you’ll find this guide informative and helpful.
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Most Helpful Customer Reviews
45 of 53 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
Very informative and thought-provoking,
By A Customer
This review is from: Barbara Kingsolver's The Poisonwood Bible: A Reader's Guide (Continuum Contemporaries) (Paperback)
This is a neat book! It starts out with a chapter about Barbara Kingsolver, quite chatty and very interesting. And then there is a much longer chapter about the Poisonwood Bible, which is one of my favourites. This chapter is quite deep and occasionally too 'academic', but most of it is clear and it has made me think about the book. I'm now reading the novel again, and I'm enjoying it even more. The book finishes with three short chapters about how people liked the novel when it came out, and about how it did so well. All of which is interesting in its own way, too. I'm going to read more of Kingsolver's novels now. If you enjoy thinking about books, and seeing things that you didn't really know were there, and if you loved the Poisonwood Bible, I can recommend this book. The author did a good job!
24 of 30 people found the following review helpful:
1.0 out of 5 stars
Did she read the book?,
By
This review is from: Barbara Kingsolver's The Poisonwood Bible: A Reader's Guide (Continuum Contemporaries) (Paperback)
Wagner-Martin's guide to The Poisonwood Bible was a disappointment. I had read the novel and I bought Wagner-Martin's book hoping to catch points that I had missed and get a better understanding of the book. Wagner-Martin did bring out some parts of the novel that I had missed and for that I am grateful. But she also got some parts of the book absolutely wrong. Most importantly, she mis-identified the village witch doctor and the person who put a snake in the chicken house which killed the youngest daughter. The fact Wagner-Martin gets confused over the plot seriously undermines her ability to guide any reader through an absolutely wonderful novel.
2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:
3.0 out of 5 stars
So-so,
By KarynH "Karyn" (Virginia) - See all my reviews
This review is from: Barbara Kingsolver's The Poisonwood Bible: A Reader's Guide (Continuum Contemporaries) (Paperback)
This contains a few errors here and there although nothing big. It's worth maybe $6 or $8, not the $10 I paid for it. This is reasonably useful if you're writing a paper on the book and are the type to get lost in the story and miss some of the larger picture. Otherwise, not really.
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