The Glass Castle: The Memoirs of Jeannette Walls

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The Glass Castle is not an ordinary story of a childhood filled with challenges and problems. It is a memoir written by Jeannette Walls of her childhood. Although a memoir and an autobiography are almost interchangeable, an autobiography incorporates the life of the author whereas a memoir is a segment of their life. This memoir depicts the defining childhood of Jeanette Walls. Since a memoir is a non-fictional story, the element of non-fiction and truth is the most important. There has to be significant amount of truth to the story in order for it to be considered non-fictional. That is why accuracy of details is so vital when writing a non-fictional story. Unlike a fictional story, these details and characters are typically not made up. The Glass Castle is the story of Jeannette Walls, the author, who shares her childhood with the readers through a flashback. Her story uses her real family members and memories making it a memoir.

The Glass Castle starts in what could have been our modern day New York. Jeannette Walls was in taxi when she saw her mother picking through garbage. She felt ashamed and asked her mother what to tell people when they asked about her. Her mother simply said “tell them the truth”. This is what triggered the flashback that brought us back to what could have been the 1960s-1970s. Jeannette’s first memory was one that would leave her scarred for life after getting burned while cooking hot dogs. The Walls were a family of six. Rex Walls and Rose Mary had 4 children. Jeannette had an older sister Lori and a younger brother Brian. Maureen was born soon after the Walls moved from Southern Arizona to Battle Mountain. The main problems that bring up the suspense are the parents themselves. Rex Walls has a drinki...

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...ut your dad being an alcoholic and your mom being irresponsible are not topics that most parents would enjoy sharing. This could cause tension or even anger when dealing with the situation.

This memoir is a very touching novel. It makes me feel grateful for having everything that Jeannette Walls had missed while young. I think memoirs/non-fiction stories have a bigger impact on the reader just because they can relate in some or many ways. Fiction stories can be made up by anyone, but non-fictional stories are brought to us by real experiences. A disadvantage of a non-fictional story is that not everyone wants to be share or be part of real tough times. Many people rather share times of triumph and hide their tough times. That is why this memoir, The Glass Castle, is incredibly stirring. It is definitely inspiring and touching to the point of feeling remorseful.

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