The Glass Castle is a memoir of Jeanette Walls childhood with her three brothers and sisters, which was not exactly all rainbows an unicorns. Her parents are both unstable and dysfunctional. Initially the family lives in the southwest, living from day to day, and moving from town to town. When things get desperate, they end up moving in with family in a small, miserable mining town in West Virginia at which point things go from bad to worse.
Just describing the outlines of Walls childhood makes me depressed. It sounds like the kind of memoir that is cathartic for the author to write, but feels voyeuristic to actually read. However, this book came highly recommended from a friend so I persevered, and I am glad I did.
Walls's strength and her and her siblings ability to transcend the circumstances they were born into is nothing short of inspiring. However, the thing that made her story special is not that she survived despite the fact that her parents were dysfunctional. Instead, despite everything they put her through, she still loved them, and had learned something from them about choosing a lifestyle rather than accepting what society dictates.
Long Story Short: Bring your tissue box, expect to be outraged, but it is a surprisingly engaging and uplifting read.
Just describing the outlines of Walls childhood makes me depressed. It sounds like the kind of memoir that is cathartic for the author to write, but feels voyeuristic to actually read. However, this book came highly recommended from a friend so I persevered, and I am glad I did.
Walls's strength and her and her siblings ability to transcend the circumstances they were born into is nothing short of inspiring. However, the thing that made her story special is not that she survived despite the fact that her parents were dysfunctional. Instead, despite everything they put her through, she still loved them, and had learned something from them about choosing a lifestyle rather than accepting what society dictates.
Long Story Short: Bring your tissue box, expect to be outraged, but it is a surprisingly engaging and uplifting read.
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