by Jeannette Walls (author of Half Broke Horses), 2005
This is a memoir of Jeannette Walls’ childhood, born one of 4 children (3 girls, one boy) to Rex and Rose Mary Walls, married in 1956. Rosemary was an artist, Rex was a genius drunk.
It starts out when Jeannette is 3 yrs. old, standing on a chair boiling some hot dogs on the stove and her pink tutu started on fire. She is taken to the hospital and after 6 weeks, her Dad whisks her out of there. They spend the rest of her childhood skedaddling — leaving towns in the middle of the night, only allowed to take one thing – she takes her geode.
These parents are so unbelievably BAD – they are not evil or cruel, just completely self-centered and ignorant. When Maureen is born, the youngest, Jeannette’s mom hands her to Jeannette to hold all the way home. Jeannette is about 6 at the time. The 4 kids take care of each other – stealing food from trash bins, hiding money from their Dad, protecting each other from bullies. When Dad discovers any of their stashes, he takes it for drinking money. They live in Southern Arizona, Las Vegas, Blythe, CA; Battle Mountain, NV; Phoenix; Welch, W. VA.
The children were taught to read by their mom, and taught math by their dad. Sometimes they went to school, sometimes not.
When they were finally old enough, each in turn bought a bus ticket to New York City. Jeannette ended up getting a college degree from Barnard. Lori ended up as an artist for comic books. Brian ended up on NYC Police force. The youngest, Maureen, is the only messed up one – she quit college, lived homeless (squatters in a tenement) with her parents in NYC, and they kicked her out and she went to California.
Mom never drank but she was entirely selfish, never took care of her kids, never really cared for them, just did her art and writing – once in a while she’d get a teaching job because the kids begged her to, when they were tired of starving. But she’d always quit, saying it was time to live for herself. She didn’t mind living in absolute pig sty- no toilet, running water, rat in the kitchen, leaky roofs, falling down houses. When she and Rex followed their kids to NYC, she turned down their offers to live with them and didn’t mind living homeless unless it was winter. Dad was truly a genius but he was a hopeless alcoholic and gambler (poker, pool) and dreamer. He was going to build them “A Glass Castle” and had plans drawn up but it was only going to happen after he discovered gold or invented this or that. Jeannette and her brother, Brian, dug a hole for the foundation. Their Dad used it for a garbage pit. When they moved to Welch, his hometown, he had not wanted to go. But the kids begged him so he went. He became a hopeless drunk there. His parents were poor, white, trash, drunks.
When they finally left Welch to follow the kids to NYC, he was so proud of Jeannette when she went to college. He studied all her text books in the public library so he’d know what she was learning in case she had any questions. He got sick, had a heart attack, and died at the age of 59. Smoked 4 packs a day since 13, drank 2 quarts a day. She “always knew he loved her in a way no one else ever had.” He called her “Mountain Goat.”
Unbelievable book!