This substantial novel by American writer, Barbara Kingsolver, is highly recommended to those who are interested in Africa and enjoy family epics with the themes of religion, politics and cause and effect. 
The Price family go to the Belgian Congo where Nathan is to work as a missionary, against the advice of their own church. The saga is told by Orleanna and her four daughters who arrive "from Bethlehem, Georgia, bearing Betty Crocker cake mixes into the jungle." Ruth May, Rachel, and twins Adah and Leah are all superbly developed characters, sustained throughout the novel.
The tragic death of one of the sisters precipitates the departure from Kalinga, leaving their preacher father behind.
The future of the girls and their mother is heavily coloured by their experiences in the Congo, and the author weaves a clever and intricate picture of their very individual lives as adults.

The novel contains lots of imagery and symbolism.