The Glass Castle

by Jeanette Walls


This book was very good. It's basically an autobiography. The author has a very interesting story to tell about her childhood. But it is a sad story. Her father was very smart but not really responsible and her mother was selfish and unstable. But the beauty of the book is that she writes with such love for her family. You don't sense bitterness or self-pity or a demand for wrongs to be made right. And that is very striking. Although it wasn't her goal, the book did make me think about what the role of government agencies should be in protecting children from neglect. She and her family did not want anyone to interfere in their lives. But what do you do when parents aren't being responsible for their children? Plucking them out and putting them somewhere else doesn't always seem like the best choice but maybe in this fallen world, in such situations, there aren't really any good choices? Lots of unanswered questions and a different perspective on poverty in America.

I am glad that Jeanette Walls laid her life bare. I think a lot can be learned from hearing people's stories.