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Publisher’s Summary
New York Times Bestseller
Indie Next Pick
Best Book of the Year: New York Times Notable, Washington Post Notable, Amazon Editor’s Choice, USA Today’s Top Ten (#1), St. Louis Post-Dispatch, Kansas City Star
The extraordinary New York Times bestselling author of The Lacuna (winner of the Orange Prize), The Poisonwood Bible (nominated for the Pulitzer Prize), and Animal, Vegetable, Miracle, Barbara Kingsolver returns with a truly stunning and unforgettable work. Flight Behavior is a brilliant and suspenseful novel set in present day Appalachia; a breathtaking parable of catastrophe and denial that explores how the complexities we inevitably encounter in life lead us to believe in our particular chosen truths. Kingsolver’s riveting story concerns a young wife and mother, Dellarobia, on a failing farm in rural Tennessee who experiences something she cannot explain.
Dellarobia’s life is changed by a magical, incomprehensible sight: boughs glowing with “an orange glaze,” which she interprets as “a vision of glory” that “looked like the inside of joy.” Her vision turns out to be some 15 million monarch butterflies that have come to roost on the Turnbow property in Feathertown, Tenn. — woods soon to be clear-cut by loggers in order to meet a looming balloon payment, if shortsighted Papa “Bear” Turnbow has his way. Her discovery energizes various competing factions—religious leaders, climate scientists, environmentalists, politicians—trapping her in the center of the conflict and ultimately opening up her world.
Novel Activities to Pair with Flight Behavior
Raising butterflies, of course! A couple of years ago, my cousin began posting pictures of caterpillars all over her Facebook page. She was raising them in her living room. Watching each little wiggler go from a tiny chomping worm to a chrysalis and then eventually emerging as a monarch butterfly fascinated me. I began reading about monarchs and raising caterpillars in general. Then, one Summer I was delighted to discover Swallowtail caterpillars on my parsley plants. I dusted off a 10 gallon aquarium with a screen lid that was sitting in my basement, put some fresh parley into a mason jar with water, added some branches for the cats to use as a place to form their chrysalises (or is it chrysali?) and brought 6 caterpillars inside. Watching their transformation was fantastic! I’ll eventually write a post about it, but if reading Flight Behavior inspires you to raise butterflies, I found the guidance at the aptly named website, Raising Butterflies, very helpful.
If you don’t feel like bringing caterpillars into your home, you can help butterflies like the monarchs in Flight Behavior by planting flowers. My research led me to planting Mexican Sunflowers in my back yard. Today, an early October evening, I was delighted to find 8-10 monarchs flitting among the flowers. To me, that’s practically a swarm! Not anywhere like the millions in Flight Behavior, but I felt like I was helping these beauties even though on a small scale.
If you end up being inspired to raise butterflies or plant a food source, I’d love to hear all about it!
– Audrey, The Novel Tourist
P.S. If you love pairing reading novels with novel activities that keep life interesting, be sure to subscribe to The Novel Tourist newsletter to stay up-to-date with all of the activity and destination-travel inspiring reading suggestions. After all, Life Should be as Fun as Fiction!