The Glass Castle by Jeanette Walls

Five of us enjoyed discussing our latest read: a memoir that tells the story of Jeanette’s upbringing by Rex, her alcoholic father, and Rose Mary, her mother who is an artist and a hoarder. Our mutual enjoyment of this book set the tone for our discussion which was quite ‘exploratory.’

We welcome 'virtual' members to our group and, for this meeting, we had email and text input from two members who at last minute couldn’t make the date. One loved the book (as did everyone else) and one didn’t. Here’s what they had to say:

Incoming text during our meeting

e-mail received before our meeting

The story tells of a family of six and from the very start it is clear there is something ‘different’ about the parenting. First impressions led some of us to believe they had a life of adventure, freedom, ideology. Possibly in many ways it was all that and more. The ‘more’ is the bit that Jeanette recalls and most of us feel she did that very well. Perhaps though, as our ‘text’ member feels, she may have overdone the hard-life bit and glossed over happier times? Life in the 60’s and 70’s was poorer, harder, simpler, colder, and hungrier after all. Most of us feel that Jeanette chose to present her childhood as she did for good reason, and that she did it very well.

As the tale unfolds it becomes clear that Rex, though highly intelligent (even intellectual), has gambling and alcohol issues. Rose Mary is a qualified teacher who chooses not to teach but to focus instead on her art. Neither of the parents prioritise income, home comforts, feeding or clothing the children. Rex does, however, dream of one day ‘getting’ enough money to build a ‘Glass Castle’ in which they can all live and he has even drawn the plans. Rose Mary is going to be a sought after artist, if only she can bear to part with some of her paintings!

Running from debt or simply needing a new adventure the family travel from state to state living in trailers, cars, an old station, Rose Mary’s mother’s home, Rex’s parent’s home and a dilapidated wooden shack. It is hard to imagine that any of these places could be regarded as home for the family. The children are poorly clothed. Their clothes (and bodies) are dirty and they frequently resort to scavenging to feed themselves. Of necessity they are a highly self-sufficient, mutually supporting group who share what they have and survive.

That said, the strength of family bonds shines through and the family remains a strong unit. We talked about how love conquers all. It didn’t matter to the children how badly their parents brought them up, they still loved them. The relationship between Jeanette and her father was of doting father and loving daughter. Lori was the perfect big sister. Brian the fun loving little brother and everyone adored Maureen (including the neighbours with whom she found her own way to survive by spending time in their households enjoying their hospitality – food and warmth was easily found for Maureen.). We were left unsure about how the children felt about Rose Mary – she was, after all a mother who did very little for her children and who put herself first when opportunities arise.

Jeanette had her trust in her father shaken on more than one occasion but, when he asked ‘have I ever let you down?’ she couldn’t tell him what she wanted to say because she loved him. With her mother Jeanette was more honest, direct, frank and open and we were impressed at how she could do this without being over-emotional and how her mother accepted (and we think respected her for it). When you ‘listen’ to the conversations between Jeanette and her mother you can understand the relationship a little better.

And if you want to know more, click on this link. There is a photo of Jeanette with her mum now and the article expands on the relationship between mother and daughter.  

http://www.nytimes.com/2013/05/26/magazine/how-jeannette-walls-spins-good-stories-out-of-bad-memories.html?_r=0

So, would we recommend this book? Yes. For most of us it is firmly on our ‘Good Read’ list and for some of us it’s on our ‘Must Read’ list.

Our next book is Chronicle of a Death Foretold by Gabriel García Márquez. We will be discussing this, our Christmas read, on Thursday 21^st January at The Hundred, 8pm.

Book Choices - November 2015

It's time to choose our Christmas read!

A Street Cat Named Bob by James Bowen: How one man and his cat found hope on the streets

When James Bowen found an injured, ginger street cat curled up in the hallway of his sheltered accommodation, he had no idea just how much his life was about to change. James was living hand to mouth on the streets of London and the last thing he needed was a pet.

Yet James couldn't resist helping the strikingly intelligent tom cat, whom he quickly christened Bob. He slowly nursed Bob back to health and then sent the cat on his way, imagining he would never see him again. But Bob had other ideas.

Soon the two were inseparable and their diverse, comic and occasionally dangerous adventures would transform both their lives, slowly healing the scars of each other's troubled pasts.

A Street Cat Named Bob is a moving and uplifting story that will touch the heart of anyone who reads it.

Neverwhere by Neil Gaiman

The stunningly original and brilliant first novel from storytelling genius Neil Gaiman. Now a six part radio dramatisation on BBC Radio 4 and BBC Radio 4 Extra.

Under the streets of London there's a world most people could never even dream of. A city of monsters and saints, murderers and angels, and pale girls in black velvet. Richard Mayhew is a young businessman who is about to find out more than he bargained for about this other London. A single act of kindness catapults him out of his safe and predictable life and into a world that is at once eerily familiar and yet utterly bizarre. There's a girl named Door, an Angel called Islington, an Earl who holds Court on the carriage of a Tube train, a Beast in a labyrinth, and dangers and delights beyond imagining... And Richard, who only wants to go home, is to find a strange destiny waiting for him below the streets of his native city.

Chronicle of a Death Foretold by Gabriel García Márquez

Chronicle of a Death Foretold is a compelling, moving story exploring injustice and mob hysteria by the Nobel Laureate Gabriel García Márquez, author of One Hundred Years of Solitude and Love in the Time of Cholera.

'On the day they were going to kill him, Santiago Nasar got up at five-thirty in the morning to wait for the boat the bishop was coming on'

Santiago Nasar is brutally murdered in a small town by two brothers. All the townspeople knew it was going to happen - including the victim. But nobody did anything to prevent the killing. Twenty seven years later, a man arrives in town to try and piece together the truth from the contradictory testimonies of the townsfolk. To at last understand what happened to Santiago, and why. . .

Our next meeting is THURSDAY 26th November 8pm at The Hundred of Ashendon. We will be discussing The Glass Castle by Jeanette Walls.