The Glass Castle: A Memoir
by Jeannette Walls
Finished on 25 October 2007. Filed under Autobiography, Family, Memoirs.
Jeannette Walls grew up with parents whose ideals and stubborn nonconformity were both their curse and their salvation. Rex and Rose Mary Walls had four children. In the beginning, they lived like nomads, moving among Southwest desert towns, camping in the mountains. Rex was a charismatic, brilliant man who, when sober, captured his children's imagination, teaching them physics, geology, and above all, how to embrace life fearlessly. Rose Mary, who painted and wrote and couldn't stand the responsibility of providing for her family, called herself an "excitement addict." Cooking a meal that would be consumed in fifteen minutes had no appeal when she could make a painting that might last forever.
Later, when the money ran out, or the romance of the wandering life faded, the Walls retreated to the dismal West Virginia mining town—and the family—Rex Walls had done everything he could to escape. He drank. He stole the grocery money and disappeared for days. As the dysfunction of the family escalated, Jeannette and her brother and sisters had to fend for themselves supporting one another as they weathered their parents' betrayals and, finally, found the resources and will to leave home.
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After-Thoughts
Definitely highly recommended. I loved the plot, the various settings, the writing style... I loved everything about this book; even more extraordinary knowing everything was in fact part of someone's (the author) real life.
Unlike the long, long chapters in most books, the chapters of The Glass Castle are mostly no more than two to four pages. Each chapter illustrates a different story, a short snippet of Jeannette's exciting life across the different states and towns of USA. So the book is essentially a collection of selected short-story episodes connecting the many years of the author's life.
The main focus was on the difficult childhood times with ignorant and stubborn parents I cannot imagine living with. But it was definitely due to Jeannette's difficult parents that this exciting story can now be read. It depicted the love ties and necessary breaks between the Walls family members—a touching, realistic yet seemingly-unrealistic story at the same time.
And I emphasise again: highly recommend. A must-read!
