Sunday July 26, 2009

The Glass Castle.... The Glass Castle: A Memoir by Jeannette Walls

My rating: 5 of 5 stars This book, from Jeannette Walls, was impossible to put down. Many times I think I should write a memoir - interesting things have happened in my life. I had an interesting childhood and I had a lot going on as a teenager. That might be interesting, right?

Well, not compared to Walls' life!

Her painful memoir of growing up with a severely alcoholic, but brilliant, father and a depressed artist mother, always on the skedaddle, starts with recounting her tragic tale at the age of 3 - when she catches herself on fire while cooking at a gas stove.

The misery seems to go down from there.

The abject poverty and terrible neglect these children were raised in is appalling. The most concerning thing is that Walls talks about all of the other families in the same slums, living similar lifestyles. It's heartbreaking and compelling. It's a story of survival against all odds, and of overwhelming family love.

I can't recommend this enough. Let me know if you want to borrow it :-)

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