Sometimes the absurd can be beautiful beyond words. And sometimes it can be incredibly painful. The Glass Castle, Jeannette Walls’ memoir of her unconventional upbringing, conveys just that, illustrating both the beauty and sorrow of a life lived as capriciously as the ever-changing winds that surround her.
The children of a fickle artist and a science savvy jack-of-all-trades, Walls and her three siblings grow up without roots, navigating the stark desert towns of the Southwest and later, West Virginia. They are free to rove the land and learn from their own self-directed discoveries. Sleeping under starlit skies, petting lions, evading hospital checkouts- their unpredictable day to day lives hold far more excitement than those of their peers.
Along with the thrills of unpredictable parenting, however, come unpredictable meals, unpredictable shelter, and a general feeling of instability. The Walls children often find themselves taking care of each other and even their parents.
Despite the neglectful ways of their parents, the Walls siblings persevere. Counterintuitive to the cycle of poverty, they grow up educated and strong, a tough breed with a wisdom well beyond their years.
Walls’ writing is honest and compelling, neither demanding sympathy nor shock from readers- just telling her story as it was and asking that we understand. The Glass Castle points at the deep influence that upbringing has on adulthood. Can we ever run away from that sliver of our past that lay beyond our control and subjuct to the whims of those that raised us?
A New York Times Best Seller for over 100 weeks, this exquisitely written memoir is a must-read.
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