The Glass Castle by Jeannette Walls

The Glass Castle was a real page burner. From one childhood memory to another, the book was hard to put aside. This is a memoir of a dysfunctional family told with humor, sadness, knidness, and pure innocence. The children of Rex and Rose Walls were moved from place to place around the country and exposed to situations that make you wonder how any of them survived, much less thrived.

From the alcoholic father who instilled a love of astrology to the mother who lamented that the maggots on the leftover ham had a right to live, the story is one of survival, love and, finally, realization of their own abnormality. Mr. Wall's succes in life is one of personal motivation that cannot go unrecognized!

It was not unusual for the four children, their college educated mother, and their highly intelligent father to sleep in their car or outside in the desert - under the stars. Their travels covered Phoenix - where their mother inherited a house - and then up to West Virginia. Often hungry, the family looked for food in left over school lunches.

You will definitely want to stick with the Walls to discover with them their own redemption. Reviewed by Sue Mayfield