return to home  
Join   |  Gift   |  Member Login   |  Library Login
BookBrowse Mobile
twitter Bookmark and Share mail to a friend Email
   Summary and Book Reviews

The Glass Castle: Summary and book reviews of The Glass Castle by Jeannette Walls, plus links to an excerpt from The Glass Castle and a biography of Jeannette Walls.

The Glass Castle

The Glass Castle
A Memoir
by Jeannette Walls
Hardcover: Mar 2005,
304 pages.
Paperback: Jan 2006,
304 pages.

Publication information
Read an Excerpt
Reading Guide
Reader Reviews

Author Biography
Author Interview
Books by this Author
Critics' Opinion:   very good
Readers' Rating:  4.5 Stars
About BookBrowse Rankings
Buy This Book
Themes Members Only Read-Alikes Members Only Add to Reading List  Members Only BookBrowse Review  Members Only

BOOK SUMMARY

Jeannette Walls grew up with parents whose ideals and stubborn nonconformity were both their curse and their salvation. Rex and Rose Mary Walls had four children. In the beginning, they lived like nomads, moving among Southwest desert towns, camping in the mountains. Rex was a charismatic, brilliant man who, when sober, captured his children's imagination, teaching them physics, geology, and above all, how to embrace life fearlessly. Rose Mary, who painted and wrote and couldn't stand the responsibility of providing for her family, called herself an "excitement addict." Cooking a meal that would be consumed in fifteen minutes had no appeal when she could make a painting that might last forever.

Later, when the money ran out, or the romance of the wandering life faded, the Walls retreated to the dismal West Virginia mining town -- and the family -- Rex Walls had done everything he could to escape. He drank. He stole the grocery money and disappeared for days. As the dysfunction of the family escalated, Jeannette and her brother and sisters had to fend for themselves, supporting one another as they weathered their parents' betrayals and, finally, found the resources and will to leave home.

What is so astonishing about Jeannette Walls is not just that she had the guts and tenacity and intelligence to get out, but that she describes her parents with such deep affection and generosity. Hers is a story of triumph against all odds, but also a tender, moving tale of unconditional love in a family that despite its profound flaws gave her the fiery determination to carve out a successful life on her own terms.

For two decades, Jeannette Walls hid her roots. Now she tells her own story.

BOOK REVIEWS

Media Reviews

Good  Kirkus Reviews
Walls's journalistic bare-bones style makes for a chilling, wrenching, incredible testimony of childhood neglect. A pull-yourself-up-by-the-bootstraps, thoroughly American story.

Very Good  Publishers Weekly
With a fantastic storytelling knack... Walls doesn't pull her punches.

Very Good  Booklist - Stephanie Zvirin (starred review)
Shocking, sad, and occasionally bitter, this gracefully written account speaks candidly, yet with surprising affection, about parents and about the strength of family ties--for both good and ill.

Very Good  The New York Times - Francine Prose
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.

Author Blurb  Dani Shapiro, author of Family History
Jeannette Walls has carved a story with precision and grace out of one of the most chaotic, heartbreaking childhoods ever to be set down on the page. This deeply affecting memoir is a triumph in every possible way, and it does what all good books should: it affirms our faith in the human spirit.

Author Blurb  Patricia Bosworth, author of Anything Your Little Heart Desires and Diane Arbus: A Biography
The Glass Castle is the saga of the restless, indomitable Walls family, led by a grand eccentric and his tempestuous artist wife. Jeannette Walls has survived poverty, fires, and near starvation to triumph. She has written this amazing tale with honesty and love.

Author Blurb  Dominick Dunne, author of The Way We Lived Then: Recollections of a Well-Known Name Dropper
Just read the first pages of The Glass Castle by Jeannette Walls, and I defy you not to go on. It's funny and sad and quirky and loving. I was incredibly touched by it.

Recent Reader Reviews

Rated 5 of 5 of 5 by Charlotte Cunningham
A great memoir
While I was at work a few days ago, one of my co workers said Hey Charlotte after I read your memoir Why? it made me think of another memoir called The Glass Castle, I think you should read it. Wow, I just finished The Glass Castle. It is a great...   Read More

Rated 5 of 5 of 5 by Jennifer W
Clinching
The Glass Castle was more than a page tuner. It paralyzes you from putting the book down! It has you clinching onto the pages to relive every memory Jeannette has from her childhood and leaves your mind wondering the rights and wrongs of...   Read More

Lists of books with similar themes


Read-Alikes


Other books by Jeannette Walls
Buy This Book:

Become a Member
Click Here
Editor's Choice
  •  Feb 05 
  •  Feb 02 
  •  Jan 30 
Ragnarok
A.S. Byatt
Ragnarok Jacket War, natural disaster, reckless gods and the recognition of impermanence in the world are just some of the threads that AS Byatt weaves into this most timely of books. Linguistically stunning and imaginatively abundant, this is a landmark.
No One is Here Except All of Us
Ramona Ausubel
No One is Here Except All of Us Jacket A beguiling, imaginative, inspiring story about the bigness of being alive as an individual, as a member of a tribe, and as a participant in history, exploring how we use storytelling to survive and shape our own truths.
Below Stairs
Margaret Powell
Below Stairs Jacket Brilliantly evoking the long-vanished world of masters and servants, Margaret Powell's classic memoir of her time in service is the remarkable true story of an indomitable woman who, though she served in the great houses of England, never stopped aiming high.
The Printmaker's Daughter
Katherine Govier
The Printmaker's Daughter Jacket Vivid, daring, and unforgettable, The Printmaker's Daughter shines fresh light on art, loyalty, and the tender and indelible bond between a father and daughter.
Why We Broke Up
Daniel Handler, Maira Kalman
Why We Broke Up Jacket Min Green and Ed Slaterton are breaking up, so Min is writing Ed a letter and giving him a box. Inside the box is why they broke up.
BookBrowse members say ....
Recent Reader Reviews
The Healing by Jonathan Odell
I read The Healing in two sittings it is a fascinating story of plantation life at the beginning of the Civil War. Granada, a slave newborn child... read more
The Help by Kathryn Stockett
This book is one that will not disappoint. Although it may seem like it is "cliche" or "dull", it is not. The wonderful first... read more
The Uncommon Reader by Alan Bennett
The Uncommon Reader is a novella by novelist and playwright, Alan Bennett. The story starts with the Queen coming across the mobile library van... read more
RSS RSS feed More...  
Most Viewed This Week
1. Brooklyn Bridge
Karen Hesse
2. Sold
Patricia McCormick
3. A Child Called It
Dave Pelzer
4. The Inheritance of Loss
Kiran Desai
5. The Notebook
Nicholas Sparks
More...
Book Club Recommendations
Take Me Home
by Brian Leung
Paperback (Nov/11)
City of Tranquil Light
by Bo Caldwell
Paperback (Oct/11)
Keeper
by Andrea Gillies
Paperback (Oct/11)
The Maid
by Kimberly Cutter
Hardback (Oct/11)
More...
First Impressions
Members read and review books often months before they're published. See what they think in First Impressions!
A Good American
by Alex George
4.5 Stars            (Feb/12)
Defending Jacob
by William Landay
4.5 Stars            (Jan/12)
Behind the Beautiful Forevers
by Katherine Boo
4.5 Stars            (Feb/12)
No Mark Upon Her
by Deborah Crombie
Five Stars            (Feb/12)
Three Weeks in December
by Audrey Schulman
4.5 Stars            (Jan/12)
More...
   Most Recent Blog Entries
What Do a Pedophile, a Polygamist and a Tattooed Girl Have in Common?
12 Debuts to Cozy Up with This February
McDonald's Giving Away 9 Million Books With Happy Meals
Why I Read by Eva Stachniak
rss  RSS   rss  subscribe
  Latest BookBrowse News
Amazon to open bricks and mortar store in Seattle (Feb 07 2012)
Last week, the word in the blogosphere was that Amazon was considering opening a bricks-and-mortar store. Over the weekend goodereader.com added substance to... Full Story
Arizona bills Amazon for $53 million in uncollected sales tax (Feb 06 2012)
The ongoing sales tax battle between many US states and large online retailers, most notably Amazon, continues with a thrust from Arizona which, last week,... Full Story
rss RSS feed More...
 
BookBrowse Poll
Q: How do you find out about new books? Choose all that apply
Recommendations from friends/family
Bookstore/library staff recommendation
Advertising
Search engines
Professional book reviews in print or online
Reader reviews online
Blogs
Social networks
Select Any That Apply
Search: Title or Author
Free Newsletters

Online Book Club

More about
The Healing
Join the discussion!


Win This Book!
The Kitchen House by Kathleen Grissom

The Kitchen House jacket

Enter To Win Now!

wordplay
Solve this clue:
"O M's M is A M's P"

and be entered
to win....
frame top
New Author
Interviews
Isabel Allende
Michelle Moran
Audrey Schulman
William Landay
frame bottom
HOME Submissions | Advertising | Libraries | Media Inquiries | Reviewers | Contact Us