The Glass Castle by Jeannette Walls

Sometimes truth is stranger than fiction, or so they say. Jeannette Walls’s memoir is an often-unbelievable account of extreme poverty and puzzling family values. The award-winning author tells her tale of growing up in a family full of dysfunction, alcoholism, destitution, and a stunning sense of pride. Frequently without the basic modern necessities like electricity, heat, and running water, the Walls children depended on discarded food and threadbare thrift store clothing for survival. Persisting on their own gumption while dodging abusive family members was the only reality known to the Walls kids.

This incredible story of survival and success despite the odds had me shaking my head in disbelief while picking my jaw up off the floor. Walls narrates the audiobook herself, and her ability to tell it in a matter-of-fact tone, and sometimes even with reverence, is mind-boggling.

This story evoked the entire range of emotions, and it is one that encourages appreciation for the most basic elements in life that are often taken for granted. I will be pondering this story for a long time to come.