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The Glass Castle: A Memoir
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Average Rating:  out of 1139 Reviews
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Price: $15.00
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Sale: $2.47
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Manufacturer: Scribner
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EAN (European Article Number): 9780743247542
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Number of Items: 1
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Binding: Paperback
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Author: Jeannette Walls
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Publisher: Scribner
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Dewey Decimal Number: 362.82092
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Publication Date: 2006-01-09
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Reading Level: 288
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Description: Jeannette Walls's father always called her "Mountain Goat" and there's perhaps no more apt nickname for a girl who navigated a sheer and towering cliff of childhood both daily and stoically. In The Glass Castle, Walls chronicles her upbringing at the hands of eccentric, nomadic parents--Rose Mary, her frustrated-artist mother, and Rex, her brilliant, alcoholic father. To call the elder Walls's childrearing style laissez faire would be putting it mildly. As Rose Mary and Rex, motivated by whims and paranoia, uprooted their kids time and again, the youngsters (Walls, her brother and two sisters) were left largely to their own devices. But while Rex and Rose Mary firmly believed children learned best from their own mistakes, they themselves never seemed to do so, repeating the same disastrous patterns that eventually landed them on the streets. Walls describes in fascinating detail what it was to be a child in this family, from the embarrassing (wearing shoes held together with safety pins; using markers to color her skin in an effort to camouflage holes in her pants) to the horrific (being told, after a creepy uncle pleasured himself in close proximity, that sexual assault is a crime of perception; and being pimped by her father at a bar). Though Walls has well earned the right to complain, at no point does she play the victim. In fact, Walls' removed, nonjudgmental stance is initially startling, since many of the circumstances she describes could be categorized as abusive (and unquestioningly neglectful). But on the contrary, Walls respects her parents' knack for making hardships feel like adventures, and her love for them--despite their overwhelming self-absorption--resonates from cover to cover. --Brangien Davis
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Customer Reviews
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Review Summary: EVERYONE INTERESTING HAS A PAST... |
Date: 2008-11-25 |
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Details: This is a beautifully rendered, poignant account of a totally dysfunctional family. It is little wonder that this book won numerous awards and was a New York Times Notable Book of the Year. I simply could not put this book down, as the author had me transfixed with her story of growing up in such an unusual family.
Born to highly intelligent, creative parents who marched to the beat of a different drum, the author and her siblings had a difficult childhood. With a dreamer of a father who battled the bottle and a mother who was somewhat irresponsible and probably mentally ill, family life was a study in contrasts with an emphasis on independence, as well as artistic and intellectual pursuits, while spurning creature comforts, stability, and the much longed for three hots and a cot. This free wheeling philosophy, espoused by the author's parents, subjected their children to hunger, homelessness, and a nomadic existence. Yet, the children were resilient and thrived, even as their parents went on a downward spiral.
The author's story is positively riveting. It is a story of survival and eventual prosperity within mainstream society. It is a story about keeping one's head, when all around one others are losing theirs. The author's journey is certainly an amazing one, and I for one am delighted that she chose to share it with others. Those who enjoy reading memoirs and autobiographies will, undoubtedly, very much enjoy this one and be fascinated and moved by the author's singular, well-told story. Bravo! |
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Review Summary: Heart breaking story...Couldn't put it down. |
Date: 2008-11-23 |
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Details: The children in this story are amazing people. This story solidifies the fact that 'some people are not meant to have children'. I loved that the hardships that the children had to overcome DID NOT break their spirit for a better life. It made me appreciate the little things! |
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Review Summary: Deeply Disappointing |
Date: 2008-11-21 |
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Details: After reading so many positive reviews for this book, I was deeply disappointed by the content and writing style. The four-word sentences and atrocious punctuation were torture for me. The author may have wanted the memoir to be from a child's perspective but the childish writing style was simply too much to bear. And this from a professional writer? Easily eighty percent of the commas could have been deleted from this book with only beneficial results.
Also I found the book to be completely incredible. Walls describes in detail lighting herself on fire by cooking hotdogs as a three year-old. She describes the skin grafts and dressing changes, and even getting her first taste of chewing gum while in the hospital. She describes a look on a nurse's face. Yet never once does she mention pain. If this event could stand out in her memory in such detail the first thing she would remember is that it was extremely painful, as burns and skin grafts undoubtedly are. Not a word about it.
Her lack of insight into her past is astounding. There is no depth to her writing, no self-awareness, nothing learned from having lived such a difficult life. There is no point to this book. It was merely a series of mishaps--almost like an outline for a memoir that never got fleshed out.
I wanted to provide another positive review for this book; to talk about how moved I was by this courageous author's path to success. Maybe add something about how inspired I am to overcome my own adversities. Instead I'm left wondering how I could have been duped into paying ten dollars for this callow memoir. |
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Review Summary: One of the best books I've read in 2008 |
Date: 2008-11-20 |
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Details: Walls writes with a keen eye and a warm heart, I could not put this book down. Easily on my top 10 list, I plan to give this book to those readers on my Christmas list. Highly recommended!! |
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Review Summary: an amazing story of courage and perserverance. |
Date: 2008-11-18 |
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Details: This tear jerking tale was one that brought tears to my eyes.The fact that the tale is true is just as amazing as Janette Walls herself.Many people go through times in their lives where they need courage, and if they are lucky they find it. Janette Walls had a childhood and adult life that have both called for an abundance of courage. Infact it seams that was the one constant in her life, she is a person of amazing strength in both living her life and telling this humbeling story. I will keep this book forever and read it many times!!! |
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