I have finished The Glass Castle by Jeannette Wall. I really enjoyed it and thank the bloggers who recommended it to me.
Having been a special education teacher for thirty plus years I wasn't necessarily shocked by some of the incidents described. Still, it is sad to remember and think about the conditions of some people's lives. Some of the stories in this memoir are pretty bleak, but they are told without whining and self-pity.
There is no shortage of tales of gruesome childhoods. Sometimes I have to wonder if that is what it takes to become a writer--an abused or neglected background. This author is a natural story teller, though, and I particularly admired her writing style.
Now I am off to the library to look for something in the mind-candy genre to give my heart a little rest.
Having been a special education teacher for thirty plus years I wasn't necessarily shocked by some of the incidents described. Still, it is sad to remember and think about the conditions of some people's lives. Some of the stories in this memoir are pretty bleak, but they are told without whining and self-pity.
There is no shortage of tales of gruesome childhoods. Sometimes I have to wonder if that is what it takes to become a writer--an abused or neglected background. This author is a natural story teller, though, and I particularly admired her writing style.
Now I am off to the library to look for something in the mind-candy genre to give my heart a little rest.
Sounds like a powerful book. Perhaps I should read it. I do have a special needs granddaughter. She was born deaf, and is flourishing with one co=chlear.
ReplyDeleteSome children are honed strong and good by their misfortune and others take a sadder path. I often wonder what each has that determines this.
ReplyDeleteI may have to try that book. You are not the first to mention it.
ReplyDeleteI too wonder how some grow strong with difficulties while others join the dark side.
I believe that I own that book. I know I have read it and identified with a great many of the feelings, if not the specific circumstances, of the author. I think I might have finished it and put it on a shelf out of sight. Too good to give away, too painful to reread.
ReplyDeleteBe sur etomtell us what you pick up.
ReplyDeleteYour observations are interesting, and I also have wondered if it does take the type of chaotic childhood that Jeannette Wall had to be a good writer. Her book is one that sticks with the reader.
ReplyDeleteI understand needing mind candy after you read such a book. I sometimes call such books cotton candy because they are all fluff. At times we also need that type of reading.
I never seem to get as much time to read as I would like but I will add that one to the list.
ReplyDeleteI read this and also thought it was well done. I've just read a memoir that's been touted in several mags, and I thought it fit nicely into the whine and complain category. It all goes to show, it's a matter of the point of view of the author. Some people have the capacity to survive emotionally. What accounts for that, I wonder?
ReplyDeleteLoved that book as well!
ReplyDeleteThanks so much for coming by this morning! I appreciate it!
I will add it to my list. Thanks!
ReplyDeleteI haven't read this one but am taking a break from depressing books right now. Sometimes I have to do that! But I'll put it on my list for the future.
ReplyDeleteI love to read, but alas! I never have enough time. Looking forward to the summer months to finish a few books! New glasses are needed too! Ha Ha!
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