Skip to main content
PBS logo
 
 

Search - The Beans of Egypt, Maine

The Beans of Egypt, Maine
The Beans of Egypt Maine
Author: Carolyn Chute
The Beans of Egypt, Maine introduced the world to the notorious, unforgettable Bean clan of small town Egypt, Maine—from wild man Reuben, an alcoholic who can’t seem to keep himself out of jail; to his cousins, the perpetually pregnant Roberta, and Beal, a man gentle by temperament but violent in defeat who marries his pious neighbor, ...  more »
Info icon
ISBN-13: 9780446300100
ISBN-10: 0446300101
Publication Date: 7/1/1986
Pages: 210
Rating:
  • Currently 3.3/5 Stars.
 24

3.3 stars, based on 24 ratings
Publisher: Warner Books
Book Type: Paperback
Other Versions: Hardcover, Audio Cassette, Audio CD
Reviews: Member | Amazon | Write a Review

Top Member Book Reviews

reviewed The Beans of Egypt, Maine on + 38 more book reviews
Helpful Score: 6
A first novel written in the primitive prose of a primitive segment of American society--the rural underclass that flies beneath the radar of "normal" American society. The Beans are the people whose places we drive by and shake our heads--an old house trailer, a pickup on blocks with the wheels missing, a rusty old wringer washer abandoned on a sagging porch, chickens and naked children in the yard.... "Beans" is a gritty and disturbing portrait of a class most of us refuse to acknowledge, written by an author who lived what she writes about.
reviewed The Beans of Egypt, Maine on + 224 more book reviews
Helpful Score: 4
If you're a person who thinks "politically correct" is a joke, you will laugh like crazy reading this book. We start with a young girl and her father in bed together, seemingly innocent, with the grandma showing up and marching her granddaughter to her own room, telling her she must stay there and miss supper because "The Lord's good meat and tatahs ain't for no dirty little girls." We laugh at poor people a lot, including a woman who seems to be retarded but keeps getting pregnant with no daddy in sight! I understand that it was a New York Times Best Seller, but I don't understand how or why. This was definitely not my cup of tea. In fairness, I stopped reading after 2 chapters, but that's because I could see no way for it to get good enough to make up for how painful those first 2 chapters were to read.
Read All 8 Book Reviews of "The Beans of Egypt Maine"

Please Log in to Rate these Book Reviews

SWLife avatar reviewed The Beans of Egypt, Maine on + 4 more book reviews
This is a peek inside the lives of people who "live poor" and live differently than most of our experiences.
I read the book for the first time many years ago and it rocked me back on my heels. Very powerful portrayal of a clan with minimal education and low job skills.
reviewed The Beans of Egypt, Maine on + 6 more book reviews
I chose to read this book because if it's regional issues. The book did not disappoint! I found the author's writing to be very authentic! Worth reading.
reviewed The Beans of Egypt, Maine on + 209 more book reviews
I read this book several years ago. It's one of those stories that you think about over and over. Poverty in Maine is brutal.
reviewed The Beans of Egypt, Maine on
This is an odd, but interesting book. It starts out with some humor that is quickly washed away with the troubles of living well below the means of others.


Genres: