|
|
 - Read it against my better judgement ... and LOVED it!*** This is an excerpt from a review on my blog. To read the entire review, go here: http://age30books.blogspot.com/2008/10/glass-castle.html *** ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ ... When my book club chose The Glass Castle for this month's pick I was not thrilled. I have a rule against reading personal tragedy/childhood abuse memoirs. Add that to the fact that "everyone" is raving about this book and you can see where this is going. I do have another rule though: read whatever book the book club chooses, and (try to) do it with an open mind. It's a good thing that I have that rule because this is a great book! ... Before I go on, I have to say that I listened to the audio version of The Glass Castle. ...[O]nce I popped that first cassette in my old car radio I was hooked. In my opinion the narrator of an audio book can make or break the book; this narrator definitely made it. She did an excellent job and I highly recommend the audio version. Now, about the book itself. The Glass Castle is definitely not a "oh poor me" memoir, nor is it one that horrifies you with details of unimaginable child abuse. If I had to describe what happened to Jeannette and her siblings I'd call it neglect. But that's not it either. That word conjures up images in my mind that don't match this book at all. Maybe "forced independence" would be a better choice. Or not. What I CAN say for certain is that the book is enthralling. The narrator is Jeannette as a child and she tells her story just as she experienced it, without any analyzing from her adult self. In that way it reminded me very much of Alexandra Fuller's memoir, Don't Let's Go to the Dogs Tonight (which I highly recommend - it's fantastic!). ... My book club is meeting to discuss this on 11/15/08. I'll be posting a recap on my blog afteward in case you're interested. Rating:  - One heckuva great bookThis inspiring book shows that no matter how bad your life is, you can change it for the better if you have the will. Rating: - I was raptI love reading about disfunctional families because I come from one. Jeanette's mom in this book was an exagerated version of my own mother. Never did the author get smarmy or wallow in self-pity. Instead it was easy to see the humor in all the incredible childhood memories. I felt I was living them with her. Rating: - Loved it!I thought this book was brilliant. I didn't know too much about it and I took a chance on reading it. I'm so glad I did. It was very moving and powerful. I can relate to parts of Jeannette's childhood and I she really tugged at my heartstrings. Reading about her determination was inspiring and really makes you see how important it is to be the best person and parent you can be for your children. Rating: - Stick with it until the end(This review contains spoilers.) This book was recommended to me by a number of friends and colleagues. I was initially excited to read it, and as the book went on and the family situation became more dire, it grew hard to read. All along, the quality of the writing and the consistency of the author's even-handed reportorial voice made the book worth giving a 4 or 5-star review. It's not really a flaw of the book that it's a struggle to read about children not having enough to eat, not going to school on a regular basis, not having health care, and living at the whim of their alcoholic and mentally ill parents. Nevertheless I had to force myself to read the middle of the book, which muted some of this amazing story's impact. It may have been my incredulity at the author and her siblings' seeming to let their parents off the hook too easily and not appearing to confront them or try to change their lives until they were nearly adults. Unlike some of the negative reviewers, I do believe that this is a true story. And it is has been meticulously and beautifully told. As the story neared its conclusion, I was glad to have stuck it out to witness the resilience of (most of) the children as they became adults and the way that they were able to individuate from their now homeless and ne'er do well parents.
|
