Reviews tagging 'Gun violence'

The Glass Castle by Jeannette Walls

28 reviews

bella613's review against another edition

dark emotional reflective sad medium-paced

3.0

This is a very well written story, by and about someone who overcame an intensely horrible foundation in life to become stable and successful. 
I won't say I liked it, though. 
The last third or so was the best out of the book- tbh I would have rated the first half 2 stars. This might be because the beginning events take place before she could possibly remember them. 

I know it's a memoir, and it's her perspective on her own life, but something I can't quite put into words to felt off about it. It reads very casually, in parts that are clearly not lighthearted. Some people described it as straightforward writing style but it felt more detached to me. I obviously dont know the facts of her life but I felt the distinct impression of someone exaggerating, not necessarily to gain sympathy or praise, but more because they actually see themselves as the main character of the world. The whole family is clearly very intelligent (even though both parents are extremely closed minded, selfish, and arguably psychotic) and the kids took a lot of initiative despite never being taught or shown any responsibility. 
I think the biggest thing that made it difficult for me to relate and/or take something from this book is that the people in it don't feel real. Walls describes everyone in her life as very clear good vs bad characters- there are the evil ones and the victims, and no in between. And despite this, she shows almost no resentment and describes no clear forgiveness. Everything that was done to the children is swept away and they sort of just act like nothing happened once they are on their own. There's no boundaries set but there's also no reconciliation. 

I listened to the audiobook, which the author reads herself. I would have preferred a different reader but I would say I'm glad I listened rather than reading it in physical copy. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Addiction, Alcoholism, Animal cruelty, Animal death, Bullying, Child abuse, Child death, Cursing, Domestic abuse, Emotional abuse, Gun violence, Infidelity, Mental illness, Misogyny, Pedophilia, Physical abuse, Racism, Rape, Sexism, Sexual assault, Sexual content, Toxic relationship, Violence, Medical content, Medical trauma, Car accident, Fire/Fire injury, Gaslighting, Alcohol, Injury/Injury detail, and Classism

nooweljayy's review against another edition

challenging emotional hopeful inspiring reflective medium-paced

4.0

if there was one story i would choose to be the best one about the importance of family (especially with the mature subject matter), it would be this one. really great gateway memoir, as someone who doesn't read memoirs that much.

*my full review on Goodreads (copy and paste the link): https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/5089850686

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Alcoholism, Child abuse, Cursing, Domestic abuse, Sexual assault, and Fire/Fire injury

Minor: Gun violence, Grief, and Sexual harassment

crystalsparkles's review against another edition

adventurous challenging dark emotional funny hopeful informative reflective sad fast-paced

3.75

It reads like a season of Shameless, it’s so sad. Over and over adults failed those kids. And yet they continued to have relationships with their parents. Families can be so complicated. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Addiction, Alcoholism, Racial slurs, Fire/Fire injury, Alcohol, Sexual harassment, and Injury/Injury detail

Moderate: Adult/minor relationship, Bullying, Chronic illness, Cursing, Domestic abuse, Emotional abuse, Gun violence, Mental illness, Pedophilia, Rape, Blood, Trafficking, and Gaslighting

Minor: Animal cruelty, Animal death, Bullying, Child death, Infidelity, Forced institutionalization, and Death of parent

lngoldstein's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional tense fast-paced

5.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Alcoholism, Child abuse, Gun violence, Mental illness, Pedophilia, Sexual assault, and Gaslighting

cheerstochels's review against another edition

adventurous challenging inspiring reflective sad medium-paced

4.5

hmmm i enjoyed this. really picked up speed when i got into it and really enjoyed it by the end. amazing writing too, i would read other works by jeannette, her voice is very good. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Addiction, Alcoholism, Bullying, and Violence

Moderate: Bullying, Confinement, Pedophilia, Racism, Gaslighting, and Abandonment

Minor: Body shaming, Confinement, Cursing, Domestic abuse, Emotional abuse, Gun violence, Physical abuse, Racial slurs, Racism, Rape, Sexual assault, Sexual violence, Blood, Stalking, Death of parent, and Pregnancy

majestictrilobite's review against another edition

While the story had the potential to be really interesting, the narrative style was dry and deadpan and ultimately failed to keep me engaged.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Addiction, Alcoholism, Animal cruelty, Bullying, Child abuse, Cursing, Domestic abuse, Emotional abuse, Gun violence, Infidelity, Pedophilia, Physical abuse, Sexual assault, Toxic relationship, Pregnancy, Fire/Fire injury, Alcohol, Sexual harassment, and Classism

ozymandias_5's review against another edition

adventurous challenging dark emotional informative inspiring mysterious tense fast-paced

4.25

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Alcoholism, Domestic abuse, Emotional abuse, Physical abuse, Racial slurs, Racism, Rape, Sexual assault, Fire/Fire injury, Alcohol, and Classism

Minor: Child abuse, Death, Drug use, Gun violence, Hate crime, Racism, Sexism, Blood, Death of parent, and Injury/Injury detail

noareads415's review against another edition

adventurous challenging dark emotional sad tense medium-paced

3.75

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Addiction, Animal cruelty, Animal death, Domestic abuse, Drug use, Gun violence, Rape, Sexual assault, Toxic relationship, and Violence

lri_reads's review against another edition

emotional reflective sad tense slow-paced

5.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Alcoholism, Fire/Fire injury, and Alcohol

Moderate: Gun violence, Pedophilia, Racial slurs, Racism, Sexual assault, Violence, and Injury/Injury detail

erica_reads_things's review against another edition

adventurous challenging emotional funny hopeful inspiring reflective sad slow-paced

5.0

"...dancing along the boarder between turbulence and order."

The parental subject matters of this memoir are unlike anything I have ever read. The only way I can possibly describe Rose Mary and Rex are a cross between granola hippies and conservative hillbillies. This book had my emotions constantly at war - one second this family would be resilient and heartfelt, the next selfish and damaging. What a true, raw look at the complexities of humans, love, family, and growth. I highly recommend listening to Jeannette read this book as well. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Addiction, Alcoholism, Bullying, Toxic relationship, Gaslighting, Abandonment, and Alcohol

Moderate: Domestic abuse, Drug use, Emotional abuse, Gun violence, Sexual assault, Violence, Medical content, Trafficking, Fire/Fire injury, Injury/Injury detail, and Classism

Minor: Animal death, Body shaming, Terminal illness, Religious bigotry, and Death of parent