By Alessandra Kelly
Imagine a childhood of star-gazing, road trips, and absolute freedom, however, your father is a severe alcoholic while your mother remains clueless in taking drastic measures for her own children. A memoir written by Jeannette Walls, The Glass Castle clearly illustrates the destructive dynamic of the Walls family through the author’s perspective. With absolute freedom, the children became wildly neglected by their parents, and constantly fought to fend for themselves. During her childhood, the Walls family continues to do the “skedaddle,” or run away, when the parents’ debt runs too high. While leaving doesn’t create too much harm for the children, the circumstances which the parents place their children at any given moment, scars them for years to come.
In the book, Jeannette describes her everlasting love for her father, which blinded her perception growing up. While her father continued to take advantage of her, Jeannette loved her father just the same, and treated him no differently than before. Ultimately, dealing with her parents allowed her to grow independently, despite the burden their lives brought on the children.
At the resolution of the novel, Jeannette seems to have accepted her family, and learned to love how each of them are individually. The author understands that the family may not agree on every issue or topic, but have grown to understand each other over time.
A truly wonderful read, everyone should read The Glass Castle, especially during the holiday season!