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Finished Book

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.
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Comments

  1. Muffy's MarksMarch 16, 2012 at 2:47 PM

    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.

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  2. TaborMarch 16, 2012 at 3:10 PM

    Some children are honed strong and good by their misfortune and others take a sadder path. I often wonder what each has that determines this.

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  3. Arkansas PattiMarch 16, 2012 at 7:14 PM

    I may have to try that book. You are not the first to mention it.
    I too wonder how some grow strong with difficulties while others join the dark side.

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  4. JuneMarch 16, 2012 at 8:19 PM

    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.

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  5. MargaretMarch 16, 2012 at 10:43 PM

    Be sur etomtell us what you pick up.

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  6. Sally WesselyMarch 16, 2012 at 11:54 PM

    Your 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.

    I 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.

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  7. Grandma KcMarch 17, 2012 at 12:25 PM

    I never seem to get as much time to read as I would like but I will add that one to the list.

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  8. BarbMarch 17, 2012 at 8:28 PM

    I 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?

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  9. Bossy BettyMarch 18, 2012 at 1:11 PM

    Loved that book as well!

    Thanks so much for coming by this morning! I appreciate it!

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  10. Linda MyersMarch 18, 2012 at 1:55 PM

    I will add it to my list. Thanks!

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  11. Susan AdcoxMarch 18, 2012 at 2:45 PM

    I 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.

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  12. Country GirlMarch 18, 2012 at 10:53 PM

    I 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!

    ReplyDelete

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