Sunday, November 25, 2012

Flight Behavior ~ by Barbara Kingsolver

Mary/Zorro has nominated Flight Behavior by Barbara Kingsolver (Nov. 2012) as our next book.
It's a novel set in the mountains of East Tennessee, in a Bible-belt community that thinks the coming of monarch butterflies is a miracle from God — while the scientists think it's an ecological disaster caused by climate changes.
Flight Behavior sounds to me like it's right up our alley, Shirley says it sounds good to her, Alison has already gotten this book from the library, and — I'll let you in on Zorro's secret life that I learned as she was planning her visit here to Tennessee and emailed this:
"Would you like to see the new Monarch butterfly 3D IMAX movie with us?  Do you know that I do teacher workshops for the Monarch Larvae Monitoring Project?   I don't think I have mentioned that I am a butterfly enthusiast!  I also help with a monarch research group at the Univ. of Georgia.  So I am very excited to see the movie while I am there.   It is not showing here."
Aha!  Mary is an expert on butterflies, especially monarch butterflies.  I'd say having a knowledgeable person in our midst would make the discussion of this book all the more interesting.

Because it's a new book, my library allowed me only seven days to read and return the book.  It may be difficult for you to get, too.  We won't read our next book until January, so some of you may get a copy feom Santa, if you ask early enough.  Read more about it here at an NPR site about Barbara Kingsolver that Donna found for us.  These three links are specifically about Flight Behavior:
Does this novel interest you?


Watch live streaming video from goodreads at livestream.com
Zorro found this video for us.  Thanks, Mary/Zorro.

Update:  Mary/Zorro also found this article on "Fall of the Monarchs" = http://inthesetimes.com/article/14215/fall_of_the_monarchs/

10 comments:

Bonnie Jacobs said...

Time to give us your input about the next book discussion. Mary/Zorro has nominated a book already and a few of you have already chimed in about Flight Behavior by Barbara Kingsolver. What about the rest of you?

Zorro said...

http://www.goodreads.com/videos/33322-goodreads-live-with-barbara-kingsolver

an interview with the author

Bonnie Jacobs said...

Thanks, Mary/Zorro. I have put this video into the Flight Behavior post itself. It makes a good addition.

Shirley said...

Very impressive, insightful interview! I hadn't realized that goodreads did author interviews. Too bad the camera angle wasn't more author friendly. It was interesting to hear Kingsolver's reflections on novels giving the reader insight to the character's minds (I used to be primarily a non-fiction reader believing that it would be best to read "true" books, but over the years have converted to reading more fiction than non-fiction). I thought her comment about the midwest being a food dessert since its agriculture focuses on grain crops that are not raised as direct foods was interesting particularly since I live in the midwest. I also liked her comments on the good match being a novelist and mother was and about her enjoyment of solitude. I'm not a novelist, but do agree with the benefits of motherhood and solitude.

Zorro said...

http://inthesetimes.com/article/14215/fall_of_the_monarchs#.UL9fqMupMBI.facebook

Here is a summary of threats to the monarch phenomenon.

Zorro said...

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=adB638SIE1k

At the overwintering sites.

Zorro said...

25% through the book.....

So far (except for the strange location change of the overwintering site of the monarchs to Tennessee) the science story and the story of the floods in Angangueo are accurate.

Zorro said...

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hk9SyAunvgU

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=twlZzJiibR8&playnext=1&list=PLCFF717EF67CF09C8&feature=results_main

This is Angangueo after the floods that are mentioned in the book.

caboose said...

I have the book enjoying every page. Wish I had more time to read
Caboose

Shirley said...

I finished the first chapter. Kingsolver does a great job of drawing you into the story and the lives of the people quite early in the book.
Earlier book reviews hadn't been appealing, but the background info on monarchs and the scientific verification by Mary as well as the author's writing style makes me hopeful that this book will become a favorite like The Poisonwood Bible.