Prime logo Prime members: New to Audible?
Get 2 free audiobooks during trial.
Pick 1 audiobook a month from our unmatched collection.
Listen all you want to thousands of included audiobooks, Originals, and podcasts.
Access exclusive sales and deals.
Premium Plus auto-renews for $14.95/mo after 30 days. Cancel anytime.
The Bean Trees  By  cover art

The Bean Trees

By: Barbara Kingsolver
Narrated by: C. J. Critt
Try for $0.00

$14.95/month after 30 days. Cancel anytime.

Buy for $25.19

Buy for $25.19

Pay using card ending in
By confirming your purchase, you agree to Audible's Conditions of Use and Amazon's Privacy Notice. Taxes where applicable.

Publisher's summary

Clear-eyed and spirited, Taylor Greer grew up poor in rural Kentucky with the goals of avoiding pregnancy and getting away.

But when she heads west with high hopes and a barely functional car, she meets the human condition head-on. By the time Taylor arrives in Tucson, Arizona, she has acquired a completely unexpected child, a three-year-old American Indian girl named Turtle, and must somehow come to terms with both motherhood and the necessity of putting down roots.

Hers is a story about love and friendship, abandonment and belonging, and the discovery of surprising resources in apparently empty places.

©1988 Barbara Kingsolver (P)2004 Recorded Books, LLC

What listeners say about The Bean Trees

Average customer ratings
Overall
  • 4.5 out of 5 stars
  • 5 Stars
    1,174
  • 4 Stars
    585
  • 3 Stars
    267
  • 2 Stars
    56
  • 1 Stars
    42
Performance
  • 4.5 out of 5 stars
  • 5 Stars
    1,064
  • 4 Stars
    446
  • 3 Stars
    185
  • 2 Stars
    65
  • 1 Stars
    53
Story
  • 4.5 out of 5 stars
  • 5 Stars
    1,066
  • 4 Stars
    450
  • 3 Stars
    213
  • 2 Stars
    51
  • 1 Stars
    39

Reviews - Please select the tabs below to change the source of reviews.

Sort by:
Filter by:
  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    5 out of 5 stars

timeless

revelant today as when she wrote it. what is society, but to care for another

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.

You voted on this review!

You reported this review!

  • Overall
    3 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    2 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    3 out of 5 stars

Not my favorite

I also wish that Barbara would’ve read this story. The narrator’s intonation here sounds like she should be reading kid’s bedtime stories & I don’t mean that negatively, only that her talent is misplaced. The voices she uses for the 20-something main characters all sound like little old ladies. I was hoping that once an ACTUAL little old lady was introduced to the story, that she might recognize her mistake & change, but no. Anyway, the story here wasn’t really engaging & the prose is nowhere near on the same level as some of her other books; Flight Behavior, Prodigal Summer & Poisonwood Bible in particular, which are all EXCELLENT cover-to-cover & I would read again in a heartbeat. This one, not so much.

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.

You voted on this review!

You reported this review!

  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    5 out of 5 stars

Barbara Kingsolver’s writing is magic.

This is my first Kingsolver novel and I finished it in two days. Tonight I plan to begin the second Turtle book. The writing is magical, the phrases are musical. Kingsolver is a master of description and comparison. Her characters are fully developed and grow as the plot progresses. This is an author I I plan to follow.

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.

You voted on this review!

You reported this review!

  • Overall
    4 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    4 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    3 out of 5 stars

Needed for plot twists

I enjoyed the writing style and the set up. I just kept waiting for more to happen!??!! There was potential in the story for more development of the plot. By the end, there just wasn’t enough happening to make me go wow.

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.

You voted on this review!

You reported this review!

  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    5 out of 5 stars

What a great book!

I didn’t want the story to end! I want more ! Well written and the development of characters was fantastic ! Great summer read/listen

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.

You voted on this review!

You reported this review!

  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    5 out of 5 stars

Marvelous

Wonderfully written, touching and a bit funny, I fell in love with the main characters.

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.

You voted on this review!

You reported this review!

  • Overall
    3 out of 5 stars

Not bad, but not engaging

The story wasn't bad, but it wasn't great either. It didn't seem to move in any particular direction, and there wasn't enough excitement or surprise or insight revealed.

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.

You voted on this review!

You reported this review!

1 person found this helpful

  • Overall
    3 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    2 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    5 out of 5 stars
  • mj
  • 12-05-18

Early Barbara Kingsolver Kinda Rocks it

I love this book. I read it many moons ago and after listening to Ms. Kingsolver read her newest novel, "Unsheltered", I thought I would enjoy the revisit. Unfortunately, the reader is all wrong. The protagonist, "Taylor" is a 27 year old woman, but the actor sounds like she's in her 50's or 60's. Her pacing feels wrong, her accents are off and I can't find the subtle empathy that Kingsolver infuses into all her characters within the actor's voice. It's a little disappointing.

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.

You voted on this review!

You reported this review!

1 person found this helpful

  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    5 out of 5 stars

One if my Favs!!

Beantrees is one of my favorite books if all time. I have read it multiple times and listened to it many times. One of my go to listens fir sure. The relationships of mother's and daughters of 3 generations is moving, hilarious and right on the money. Also a story of a girl leaving home, becoming a woman and a mother in an instant. Great storytelling and a great listen. It's ok to laugh!

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.

You voted on this review!

You reported this review!

  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    5 out of 5 stars

Incredible.

Worth the time and money/credit. Trust me. This story is one everyone needs to hear.

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.

You voted on this review!

You reported this review!