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NEW YORK (AP) — In her latest literary venture, Barbara Kingsolver, renowned for her Pulitzer Prize-winning novel “Demon Copperhead,” is exploring a theme she seldom touched upon during her upbringing in a quaint Kentucky town: the world of classical music.
On Thursday, Harper, a division of HarperCollins Publishers, announced that Kingsolver’s new novel, “Partita,” will hit shelves on October 6. Meanwhile, readers in the UK can anticipate its release through Faber on October 8. Similar to her previous works like “The Poisonwood Bible” and “Demon Copperhead,” “Partita” delves into the dynamics of a rural setting. This time, the story revolves around a married woman and former pianist who remains deeply captivated by the music career she never pursued.
Back in the 1970s, Kingsolver was a music scholarship recipient at DePauw University but eventually switched her focus to biology, realizing that a professional future in classical piano seemed unlikely. Concurrently, she aspired to write, spending time in journalism and crafting poetry and short stories before debuting her first novel, “The Bean Trees,” in 1988.
“Throughout my life, I’ve harbored a fervent love for both language and music, allowing them to meld harmoniously in my mind,” Kingsolver reflected in a statement. “The idea of writing about a classical musician never crossed my mind, given the types of characters I typically explore. Growing up, I was the odd rural kid who cherished Tolstoy and Bach but kept those passions hidden. Now, it seems a timely endeavor to question the barriers that suggest small-town fiddlers and country music enthusiasts don’t belong in symphony halls, and vice versa.”
At 70, Kingsolver continues to be celebrated for her fiction that often addresses social issues such as class dynamics, community bonds, immigration, and environmental concerns. Her bestseller, “Demon Copperhead,” reimagined Charles Dickens’ “David Copperfield” in a contemporary Appalachian context. Released in 2022, it gained acclaim as an Oprah Winfrey book club selection and shared the Pulitzer Prize for fiction with Hernan Diaz’s “Trust.”
Her other honors include a National Humanities Medal, a National Book Award for lifetime achievement and induction into the American Academy of Arts and Letters.