The Glass Castle by Jeannette Walls

This is my all-time favorite book! This true story is at times, unbelievable. It is the memoir of Jeannette Walls and tells of her growing up with parents that were idealistic, nonconformist, irresponsible nomads.

 

Her father was an alcoholic dreamer who always promised Jeannette he was going to build the family a “Glass Castle” but never did. Neither parent was a role model, but instead, provided the family with abject poverty and constant moving around the country to make “new starts.”

 

I found this book fascinating. To see that one can grow up in this chaotic life, yet still decide to become a successful functioning member of society is inspiring. The challenges that the children faced were hard to believe. It was just the type of book that you don’t want to put down because you want to find out what will happen next to this dysfunctional family. Everyone I know who has read this book says, “Can you believe it?”

The book actually opens with a current day event, where Jeannette sees her mother digging through garbage cans looking for food in New York City. Jeannette tells how she sank down into her cab so her mother wouldn’t recognize her. She later asks her mother, “what am I supposed to tell people about you?” Her mother’s reply: “tell the truth”. This makes Jeannette realize that although she is living an apparently successful life in New York, she is actually living a lie because she had not been truthful with anyone about her upbringing. That is what inspired her to share her story with the world.

Jeannette wrote a sort of follow up, “Half Broke Horses: A True Life Novel” that I have also read. It is the true life story of her grandmother, a no-nonsense, resourceful woman growing up the in the west. It was another great story of a strong, smart woman. In The Glass Castle, the grandmother is the stable mother-figure that Jeannette looks to early in her life. It was interesting to read about her life and how she came to be such a tough woman. I would highly recommend owning your own copy of this book!

~Sheila Martinez
Co Director , Tracy Chapter

Let's Pretend This Never Happened: A Mostly True Memoir

I discovered Jenny Lawson the way many of her fans discovered her: through her blog post about a giant metal chicken named Beyoncé (Blog Post Titled: And that’s why you should learn to pick your battles.). That single blog post turned me into a Bloggess fan, and I patiently waited several months for the release of her first book. Luckily she blogs regularly, so there was rarely a dull moment in the land of The Bloggess. I read her book in just a couple of days, with laughter and tears.

The book reads like her blog and contains a few of her blog posts (the infamous post about Beyoncé is included) but only a small part of the book is from her blog. You get all sorts of childhood and early year’s stories that make you see how Jenny turned out to be the woman she is today.  You also get more of a glimpse into the life that she shares with her husband, Victor, the only man in this world who could ever be her husband.

Through Jenny’s battle with anxiety and depression, you learn that hiding behind your illnesses benefits no one and that there are some days that you have to hit them head on and other days that you just need to withdraw for a while. I have also learned that humor and sarcasm are both much needed forms of art that can turn a bad situation into something better and that ethical taxidermy could possibly brighten your day.

Rarely do I read books more than once, but this one is definitely one that I will probably read annually. Jenny has a second book in the works for 2014, and I am already looking forward to reading it. For now, you can find her at http://thebloggess.com.

~Reviewed by Tonya Overstreet

Nashville Member, LBDC

How to Be A Woman by Caitlin Moran

Through the mighty powers of related suggestions on my Kindle, I discovered How to Be a Woman, or at least I discovered the book and not the answer. My Kindle is usually pretty good with suggestions, and it was right about this one, as well.

Overall I enjoyed the book as long as I don't pick apart each chapter. There were some chapters that I liked more than others, and a couple of chapters I didn't like at all. Admittedly, I skimmed or skipped through the couple of chapters that didn't do much for me, such as the chapter on Abortion and Role Models. Her views on Abortion don't match mine, and while I respect that we are both allowed to have different views, I felt like she was "poking fun" at people who don't have her same view. The Role Models chapter seemed to be there to solely put into words her high disdain for Katie Price.

With those two chapters out and a few soapbox moments in some other chapters, the book was pretty spot on for what I enjoy reading in a book about what women like and really bonded with Caitlin through her words. Caitlin is a mother and has a chapter on being a mother, followed by a really awesome chapter on why women shouldn't feel that they have to be mothers. Being a Not Mom myself, I gained tremendous respect for Caitlin for addressing the issue and pointing out that women who are childless (by choice or not) are not less of a woman. Caitlin was truly and properly speaking for me as a childfree woman by saying things like, "But deciding not to have children is a very, very hard decision for a woman to make: the atmosphere is worryingly inconducive to saying, “I choose not to,” or “It all sounds a bit vile, tbh.” We call these women “selfish.” The inference of the word “childless” is negative: one of lack, and loss. We think of nonmothers as rangy lone wolves—rattling around, as dangerous as teenage boys or men. We make women feel that their narrative has ground to a halt in their thirties if they don’t “finish things” properly and have children."

Caitlin presents herself well as this woman that most women would enjoy spending time with. She's like an 'every woman' representative for women who aren't and never have been perfect and perhaps identify closely with their weird side.

"How to Be a Woman"  is recommended for people who lean more left than right and understand that there are way too many facets of womanhood to attempt to explain fully in a novel. However, reading this book can help you gain a better understanding of why you are who you are and why society views you in certain ways.

~Reviewed By Tonya Overstreet

Nashville Member, LBDC

The Joy Luck Club by Amy Tan

Being that we're all part of a "club" I was very interested to see what the Joy Luck Club was all about. This is a beautify story about Chinese-American women and how things are not always what they seem. The story is based on the relationship between Jing-Mei Woo and her mom Suyuan who had recently passed away. Through a series of short stories that bound themselves into a novel we get to hear from 4 mothers and 4 daughters and how they got to where they currently are in life. Jing-Mei finds out why her mom acted "strange” or told her certain things that didn't make sense at the time. She was able to find out more about her mom's best friends who were her "Auntie's" and why they were part of the Joy Luck Club.

The Joy Luck Club was started with Suyuan when she had emigrated from China to San Francisco in 1949. It is a weekly mahjong party which is basically a dice/domino type game with four players. However, it is way more than just the game it also involves food, superstitions, money, and gossip. This weekly meeting is about family, culture, and carrying on a long standing tradition among four families.

Throughout the book I was amazed how one story weaves into the other. The bits and pieces of the Chinese heritage and history are very intriguing. I encourage all the members of The Little Black Dress Club to take the time to learn about this other fascinating club!

Reviewed by Suzy Hicks
Co Director, Columbus Chapter

Wild by Cheryl Strayed

Have you ever experienced a downward spiral in life and wished that you could just get away from it all, even if only for a few minutes?  That is exactly what Cheryl Strayed did and her memoir, “Wild:  From Lost to Found on the Pacific Crest Trail,” outlines how she was able to “find” herself again after hiking from the Mojave Desert  through California and Oregon to Washington State on the Pacific Crest Trail.   

Cheryl’s life was in shambles.  She was in her mid 20s, had lost her mother to cancer, destroyed her marriage, started using heroin, had no money, and had lost contact with her family.  Her lifestyle had always been one that involved taking risks, but none compared to the risk she took when she hiked 1100 miles on the Pacific Crest Trail, alone!

When I first started reading this book I will admit, I thought Cheryl was crazy to even attempt this adventure.  She had no hiking experience but decided to embark on this journey after she picked up a book on hiking the Pacific Crest Trail while standing in a check-out line.  Ironically, she never even read the book before starting the hike.  She spoke to a few people at a sporting goods store, bought some equipment, packed her backpack (which she refers to as “Monster” because it is way too heavy) and literally headed out for the trail.  Physically, she was in no way prepared for this journey.  She talks about losing her toenails because her boots are too small, her throbbing feet, and the pure utter exhaustion she felt most evenings.  But, she forged on day by day and eventually grew stronger not only physically but emotionally as well.

I know there is no way I could do what Cheryl Strayed did, but I give her credit for being willing to not only tackle this trail alone, but her own demons as well.  Sometimes from our own darkness emerges something really great and I would recommend that you travel along side Cheryl to learn more about her journey from being lost to found in Wild.

 

Reviewed by: Richelle Schneider, Chicago Southlands Director, LBDC