The Glass Castle by Jeannette Walls

The Glass Castle by Jeannette Walls

My rating: 5 of 5 stars


Jeannette Walls’ The Glass Castle is one of those memoirs that stays with you long after you turn the last page. From start to finish, it’s a story of survival, of heartache, and of character, but also of love, strange as that may seem given the trauma involved.

Walls writes with such clarity and compassion. She doesn’t demonize her parents for their failings. Instead, she shows us how they shaped her: the wild dreams of her father, the stubborn independence of her mother, the way the kids together learned to fend for themselves, to love despite hardship. Even when their lives were unstable and unsafe, there was beauty in the way they clung to small things, hope, loyalty, creativity.

What makes this book exceptional is Walls’ balance: the raw suffering, yes, but also the humor, the resilience, the vivid imagery. You don’t just read about growing up without consistent housing or always moving around, you feel what that is, the confusion, the longing, but also the strength it builds.

Highly recommended. Five stars. This is a book that opens your eyes, your heart, and makes you more understanding of parts of the human experience that are too often overlooked.



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