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Glass Castle, a Memoir by Jeannette Walls
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Glass Castle, a Memoir (edition 2005)

by Jeannette Walls

MembersReviewsPopularityAverage ratingMentions
20,465794213 (4.15)769
Now a major motion picture from Lionsgate starring Brie Larson, Woody Harrelson, and Naomi Watts. MORE THAN SEVEN YEARS ON THE NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER LIST The perennially bestselling, extraordinary, one-of-a-kind, "nothing short of spectacular" (Entertainment Weekly) memoir from one of the world's most gifted storytellers. The Glass Castle is a remarkable memoir of resilience and redemption, and a revelatory look into a family at once deeply dysfunctional and uniquely vibrant. When sober, Jeannette's brilliant and charismatic father captured his children's imagination, teaching them physics, geology, and how to embrace life fearlessly. But when he drank, he was dishonest and destructive. Her mother was a free spirit who abhorred the idea of domesticity and didn't want the responsibility of raising a family. The Walls children learned to take care of themselves. They fed, clothed, and protected one another, and eventually found their way to New York. Their parents followed them, choosing to be homeless even as their children prospered. The Glass Castle is truly astonishing--a memoir permeated by the intense love of a peculiar but loyal family.… (more)
Member:pooj21
Title:Glass Castle, a Memoir
Authors:Jeannette Walls
Info:Scribner (2005), Hardcover
Collections:Your library
Rating:
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Work Information

The Glass Castle: A Memoir by Jeannette Walls

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» See also 769 mentions

English (781)  Spanish (3)  German (3)  French (2)  Piratical (1)  Norwegian (1)  All languages (791)
Showing 1-5 of 781 (next | show all)
Shiela, Ottar, Alison and Alistar Mowat 17.03.2011
  Kringla | Mar 16, 2024 |
A memoir of a family raised in extreme poverty and the children achieve a decent life for themselves.
  bentstoker | Jan 26, 2024 |
Friends have been telling me to read this book for years but I thought the subject matter seemed like too much of a downer. When I saw a teaser for the movie I thought it was finally time to dig in to this memoir.

Wow.

I couldn't put it down. I was fascinated, disgusted, horrified and amazed. The Wells children are astonishing and the parents......I just can't believe people could behave this way even if it was all wildly exaggerated.

( )
  hmonkeyreads | Jan 25, 2024 |
Such an interesting life, and well written. I especially appreciate the lack of victimhood, but also no minimizing of events ( )
  rosenmemily | Jan 7, 2024 |
Here's what I wrote in 2012 about this read: "Same author as previously read book. Got hooked via reading online reviews. Details her impoverished upbringing, by irresponsible yet seemingly-brilliant parents. Reminds how quickly children mature and become responsible when forced by their reality." Quotations in the comments section are my exact Kindle highlights. ( )
  MGADMJK | Dec 7, 2023 |
Showing 1-5 of 781 (next | show all)
''The Glass Castle'' falls short of being art, but it's a very good memoir. At one point, describing her early literary tastes, Walls mentions that ''my favorite books all involved people dealing with hardships.'' And she has succeeded in doing what most writers set out to do -- to write the kind of book they themselves most want to read.
 

» Add other authors (11 possible)

Author nameRoleType of authorWork?Status
Walls, Jeannetteprimary authorall editionsconfirmed
Gibson, JuliaNarratorsecondary authorsome editionsconfirmed
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Epigraph
Dark is a way and light is a place,
Heaven that never was
Nor will be ever is always true
-Dylan Thomas
"Poem on His Birthday"
Dedication
To John, for convincing me that everyone who is interesting has a past
First words
I was sitting in a taxi, wondering if I had overdressed for the evening, when I looked out the window and saw Mom rooting through a Dumpster.
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(Click to show. Warning: May contain spoilers.)
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Wikipedia in English (3)

Now a major motion picture from Lionsgate starring Brie Larson, Woody Harrelson, and Naomi Watts. MORE THAN SEVEN YEARS ON THE NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER LIST The perennially bestselling, extraordinary, one-of-a-kind, "nothing short of spectacular" (Entertainment Weekly) memoir from one of the world's most gifted storytellers. The Glass Castle is a remarkable memoir of resilience and redemption, and a revelatory look into a family at once deeply dysfunctional and uniquely vibrant. When sober, Jeannette's brilliant and charismatic father captured his children's imagination, teaching them physics, geology, and how to embrace life fearlessly. But when he drank, he was dishonest and destructive. Her mother was a free spirit who abhorred the idea of domesticity and didn't want the responsibility of raising a family. The Walls children learned to take care of themselves. They fed, clothed, and protected one another, and eventually found their way to New York. Their parents followed them, choosing to be homeless even as their children prospered. The Glass Castle is truly astonishing--a memoir permeated by the intense love of a peculiar but loyal family.

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Book description
The child of an alcoholic father and an eccentric artist mother discusses her family's nomadic upbringing, during which she and her siblings fended for themselves while their parents outmaneuvered bill collectors and the authorities.
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