By Jeannette Walls
Journalist Walls was raised by parents who flouted conventions, working at odd jobs (including gambling) and finding housing in run-down and deserted, mostly unsafe, buildings. The story opens as 3-year-old Jeannette is boiling hot dogs on a gas stove and her dress catches fire. Unsupervised, she is badly burned by the time she finds her mother and they get a ride to the hospital. After 6 weeks her father, Rex, declares her sufficiently recovered and removes her from the hospital (without an official discharge).
Rex lives by his own rules, His wife, who seems to bounce from depression to exuberance (manic-depressive?), puts her artwork before mothering, and their children (Laurie, Jeannette, Brian and Maureen) fend for themselves. Thankfully, the kids are both bright and resourceful - and they survive the many moves, eventually finishing high school - Laurie in Welch, WV (where the family live in a shack without plumbing or electricity), Jeannette in NYC (where she has joined Laurie), Brian in Welch (I think) though he joins his sisters in NYU after graduation, and Maureen in NYC (where her sisters support her). Jeannette goes on to college at Barnard and starts a career in journalism. The ne'er-do-well parents join the kids in NYC, at first freeloading, but eventually becoming squatters in an abandoned building.
Though cause for resentment, the author never appears to hold rancor toward her crazy parents. Her father was probably a brilliant man and always wanted to build a "glass castle" for his family; his ambitious were thwarted by alcoholism and stubbornness. Her mother, who had a teaching degree, put everything on hold to pursue panting, a career that never took off. Toward the end of the book, Jeannette is astonished to learn that a parcel of Texas land her mother owns is valued at $1M - but her mother just wants to keep it "in the family" and would not considering selling, even though her children went without shoes. Interesting story!
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