2. What kind of man was Rex Walls? What were his strengths and weaknesses, his flaws and contractions?
3. What kind of woman was Rose Mary Walls? What did you think about her description of herself as an "excitement addict?
4. What is the "glass castle" and what does it signify to Jeanette and her father?
5. Though it portrays a hard life, The Glass Castle is never depressing. How did the author achieve this?
6. Did you find it easy or difficult to be nonjudgmental toward Jeanette's parents?
3 comments:
I did like the book. There were some parts that was hard to read and I could not believe that it was a real story sometimes.
I did have a hard time to make up my mind about the parents. Sometimes I thought they abused their children and other times I thought they were great.
They did teach their children to be independent and they excelled at school wonderfully.
I felt sad how often they were hungry and how the father wasted his time and money on alcohol.
I was most impressed that the children did rose above the odds and did succeed. I was sad that their marriages were not successful and wondered if their parents had a big role in that.
Overall, I did get one or two parenting tips and I did enjoy reading the book. Thanks for the recommandation.
1. I liked the book as well. However, it was hard for me to read at times. I had to keep putting it down so I could get through the difficult parts. For that reason, I don't know if I could ever read it again. One of the most shocking things to me was how the mother could buy chocolate bars while her children starved. A very inspiring aspect of the book was Jeanette's relationship with her brother. He was the epitome of loyalty and love.
2 & 3. Despite what the cover of the book suggested, I did not have a love-hate relationship with her parents. I disliked them from start to finish. There were plenty of times that I felt social services should have removed those children. And I just can't understand how any loving parent could allow their children to starve when they had the power to change it (like get a job). It is difficult for me to recall any strengths either of the parents had--except to always see the bright side of things.
4. I'm still thinking on this one. . . let's hear what others think.
5. I actually didn't even notice that it wasn't a depressing book until you posed this question, Myndi. But you're right. It wasn't all doom and gloom. I suppose the comic relief helped to lighten the mood. And I think Jeanette's hope for the future was present throughout the book.
6. Sadly, it was very easy for me to judge the parents. I know that's not nice. But sometimes I have no patience with people's mistakes when they affect a child.
All in all, it was a great book. I'm very glad I read it and I would recommend it to others.
I just left a long comment and got an error message. Grrr. I'll try again.
I couldn't make myself re-read the book, even though I really enjoyed it the first time.
Like Ruth I kept hoping social services would get inolved. I remember thinking, "Where is everybody? What happened to the safety net that is supposed to protect children from situations like this?"
Also like Ruth, I had a hard time coming up with any strengths in the parents (maybe it's the social work training :)). They were very creative and imaginative, but in a very self-serving way. I feel that when you become a parent, the needs of your children take precident over your own wants. It drove me crazy how they indulged in their own desires (like alcohol, chocolate, and not getting a job unless it was just right) while their children were suffereing.
To me the glass castle represents all the broken promises and dashed hopes the children expreienced growing up. It seems the epitome of unfulfilled dreams.
I loved the book, but it is hard to read. I would (and have) recommend it to others.
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