Well that’s it! We’ve made it to the end of The Glass Castle. We will have an opportunity to meet in person on September 4th at 11:30 in Siegfried Hall to chat about the book. Be sure to attend! Free lunch follows with some Glass Castle treats 🙂
Hopefully you enjoyed the book and the blog. We’ll send you a short survey in early September to find out if you enjoyed the program and how we can do better in the future.
In the meantime, here is the last question, what touched you/ impacted you most about this book?
I’ll give my answer in one of the comments …and of course link it to SJU.
See you soon!
SJU Reads 
What touched me most about the Glass Castle was the strength of the children to maintain hope and optimism throughout their life. The Walls children had such an incredible bond and were always supporting one another, yet at the same time were incredibly independent. It also really intrigued me how inventive they were with the meager items in their house. It was inspiring to see how they achieved a bright future for themselves that they were always wishing for and one could almost feel the relief at the end of the novel. The Glass Castle influenced my perspective on life and the importance of finding happiness and hope when it is most difficult.
The Glass Castle was a truly inspiring book and I think what touched me the most was the ambition/drive of the Walls children. Even though they had questionable role models growing up, even though they suffered poverty and hardship, even though it would have be easier to settle/ accept the life that they had – they persevered through it all. All their life, the children looked after themselves and ultimately, they stopped at nothing to improve their quality of life. In the end, they accomplished amazing things – despite the odds that were against them – and proved that anything is possible for those who have the will to work hard, be resilient and persevere.
This was an extremely inspiring novel. The factor that was most inspiring to me was that although the children went through many difficult times they persevered and created bright futures for themselves. Another touching thing about the novel is that the Walls parents may not have been the best role models, or the best parents or providers, but they loved their children very much and occasionally found ways to show it, like having christmas late so they could have presents or giving stars. This was far from an ideal family, however it was a family who loved each other even when there was such a lack of money that the necessities could not be provided, it showed money does not buy happiness or love.
What touched me the most about the book was the author’s positive attitude despite the horrible circumstances. I was also surprised that not only did the parents love their children, but the children, especially the author, seemed to love their parents in return for the most part. I too, was touched by the Wall’s optimism, perseverance, hard work, dedication, and love. This book was awesome because it kept reminding me to work hard, and be thankful for the life and opportunities I have.
I think what was so amazing about the Walls children is how they were able to, eventually, accept their childhood/circumstances and love their parents while also having the determination to do what was best for themselves.
Brian, Jeanette, and Lori all have moments throughout the end of the book where they take care of their parents, visit their new house even though it makes them uncomfortable, and get together to laugh as a family. And yet, the reason they were able to live happy lives is because they were able to set boundaries and have their own places to live -their own space and more comfortable style of living.
The kind of self confidence, love, and dedication to self/others that it takes to follow ones dreams and seek huge change and independence while also accepting ones past and loving the people that had to be left behind is something that takes a lot of strength, and it is evident from this memoir that Jeanette and her siblings had that strength.
Hi everyone, Diana here from the SSO (and I thought I had already commented but can’t find my post!) Maybe I accidentally vetoed my own post! Ah well, what stuck with me or stung me about this novel was the fact no one did anything. Children’s Aid came once and didn’t come back. How did this occur based on the description of the house at this time?! The book for me is a good incentive for getting involved and pitching in. P.S. Did I mention Jeremy B and Evy K win our last 2 Watcard giftcards? I’ll be in touch.
The part of the book that impacted me the most was the fact that as I was reflecting on the book and the many unbelievable horrors of Jeanette’s life, I realized that the book was a memoir and that a real person, Jeanette, had truly endured these events. I therefore sympathized with the characters in the novel more deeply and thus feel that while the world seems to keep spinning round, there are many people out there who have experienced misfortune and have stories to tell.