HomeGroupsTalkMoreZeitgeist
Search Site
This site uses cookies to deliver our services, improve performance, for analytics, and (if not signed in) for advertising. By using LibraryThing you acknowledge that you have read and understand our Terms of Service and Privacy Policy. Your use of the site and services is subject to these policies and terms.

Results from Google Books

Click on a thumbnail to go to Google Books.

A Wolf At The Table A Memoir Of My Father by…
Loading...

A Wolf At The Table A Memoir Of My Father (edition 2008)

by Augusten Burroughs

MembersReviewsPopularityAverage ratingMentions
2,003648,087 (3.58)35
The author of "Running with Scissors" delves into new territory with his most personal and unexpected memoir yet. "A Wolf at the Table" is the story of Burroughs' relationship with his father, his stunning psychological cruelty, and the redemptive power of hope.
Member:hilaryg
Title:A Wolf At The Table A Memoir Of My Father
Authors:Augusten Burroughs
Info:Virgin Books (2008), Paperback
Collections:Your library
Rating:
Tags:None

Work Information

A Wolf at the Table: A Memoir of My Father by Augusten Burroughs

  1. 01
    The Psychopath Test: A Journey Through the Madness Industry by Jon Ronson (WildMaggie)
    WildMaggie: The personal experience of living with one versus the science of finding one.
None
Loading...

Sign up for LibraryThing to find out whether you'll like this book.

No current Talk conversations about this book.

» See also 35 mentions

Showing 1-5 of 61 (next | show all)
This is well written, but dark. Edge of the seat type suspense for me, seeing just how off the rails some parents can be. Be prepared. ( )
  Cantsaywhy | May 22, 2023 |
In this book Burroughs captures my attention up front by saying that for years he couldn’t remember much from his childhood about his father. When it all starts coming back, it’s almost too much to bear.

He also presents himself as a sympathetic character, one that I feel a deep empathy for. One of the ways he does this is by showing how his father treated one of their dogs–and how it bothered Augusten.

They had three dogs, and Burroughs loved them all. The two larger dogs were allowed inside the house by the father. The smallest, “a little black elkhound with a curlicue tail” named Grover, was not allowed in the house. The reason was that the father, for no apparent reason, considered him an “outdoor dog.” Grover “practically never left the deck where he slept, pressed against the sliding glass doors.” Burroughs writes: “Like there was a special breed of dog that might die if exposed to a sofa.” This upsets Burroughs (and me). The last two paragraphs in this passage are especially poignant:

"Even on the coldest winter night when Grover was no more than a black, furry mound curled into himself and pressed up against the house, my father wouldn’t let him in.

Sometimes, I let bad thoughts linger. Like, if my father made Grover sleep outside in the cold, what stopped him from locking me out there, too? He had two sons; what if he decided to make the younger one the “outside” son?"

And, in a way, that is exactly what does happen to Burroughs.
One of the strongest threads in this book is the secret that Burroughs’ father shared with him. The question is: did it happen or not? But it’s Burroughs asking the question this time, not the reader.

If you look up reviews you will see that some critics don’t like this book. They might miss the humor they found in Running with Scissors. But this book has real heart. Some readers say that Burroughs couldn’t possibly remember the mobile above his crib. I don’t know what they are talking about because I remember a vivid event from when I was still in a crib–less than two years old. I remember my room in detail, especially the shadows and lights and special objects like my music box.

In reading reviews of this book, I noticed that Burroughs’ brother, who has Asperger’s, says he has trouble reading behavior in other people and that he believes their father had some of his own “autistic traits.” This is a controversial subject because many of us love people who have Asperger’s or are autistic. Their condition doesn’t make them cruel to children or animals.

If you had a very difficult parent, this book might break your heart. ( )
  LuanneCastle | Mar 5, 2022 |
This book is different from Burroughs' others; it's not done for laughs or arch amusement. Some reviewers have faulted Burroughs' descriptions of childhood perceptions as maybe overly precise, precious, over the top--but there's reasons this has to be. Burroughs' primary grievance against his father is simply that his father didn't love him. The child that he was was unseen, unheard, un-marvelled at. So Burroughs has to love the child he was, in his father's place.

His descriptions of his father's terrible, painful, and disfiguring ailments are telling as well. He acknowledges his father's pain, while keeping it at arm's length, because children can't be responsible for adult troubles.

In all, this seems like an entirely authentic account of Burroughs' very particular experience, an attempt to re-become the child he was while from a distance watching that boy navigate the perilous ground he must traverse to reach the present writing self.

I am glad he made it. So may we all. ( )
  AnnKlefstad | Feb 4, 2022 |
This book was a hard read. I felt it was fairly disturbing and some things were difficult to believe. But if you're looking for aomething over the top that is supposed to be real, read this book. Just maybe not before bed. I had nightmares the entire week I spent reading it. ( )
  jessie_mae | Jul 28, 2020 |
This is one of my favorite, non humorous memoirs I have read. I really felt for Burroughs as he describes growing up with his father, a man that "bonds" with his son through frankly scary situations. The event in the description, a dream about helping his father bury a man, is one of many events that the author goes through with his dad. A raw, descriptive, and powerful memoir. I would definitely recommend reading this book if you like memoirs. ( )
  rkcraig88 | Jul 15, 2019 |
Showing 1-5 of 61 (next | show all)
no reviews | add a review
You must log in to edit Common Knowledge data.
For more help see the Common Knowledge help page.
Canonical title
Original title
Alternative titles
Original publication date
People/Characters
Important places
Important events
Related movies
Epigraph
Dedication
For Christopher Schelling, who is short and mean and saved my life and gave me every start that I pointed to. This book belongs to you. Because I never could have written it without your brutish and relentless love. I know I never say it, but I cherish you and love you with all my heart.
First words
If my father caught me he would cut my neck, so I just kept going.
Quotations
Last words
Disambiguation notice
Publisher's editors
Blurbers
Original language
Canonical DDC/MDS
Canonical LCC

References to this work on external resources.

Wikipedia in English (2)

The author of "Running with Scissors" delves into new territory with his most personal and unexpected memoir yet. "A Wolf at the Table" is the story of Burroughs' relationship with his father, his stunning psychological cruelty, and the redemptive power of hope.

No library descriptions found.

Book description
Haiku summary

Current Discussions

None

Popular covers

Quick Links

Rating

Average: (3.58)
0.5 3
1 17
1.5 1
2 37
2.5 9
3 140
3.5 27
4 158
4.5 15
5 88

Is this you?

Become a LibraryThing Author.

 

About | Contact | Privacy/Terms | Help/FAQs | Blog | Store | APIs | TinyCat | Legacy Libraries | Early Reviewers | Common Knowledge | 203,215,363 books! | Top bar: Always visible