The Glass Castle Review

Title of the Book: The Glass Castle
Author: Jeannette Walls
Number of Pages: 288
Rating: ☆☆☆☆

Review:

The Glass Castle by Jeannette Walls is a captivating memoir about Jeannette's family life growing up. Jeanette was one of four children born to Rex and Rose Walls. The family never had a permanent address and remained rootless to avoid bill collectors. Her father Rex Walls was an alcoholic and failed engineer that came up with many schemes and inventions to get rich. He never followed through with these projects and couldn’t keep a regular job. Her Mother was an ‘excitement addict’ and aspiring artist. Her mother was educated to be a school teacher but she hated working a regular job and actually throws fits over it throughout the book.

Money was tight and between the six of them that became an increasing issue as they got older. No matter how bad of a situation they were in Jeannette always tried to find something good in it. They staggered from city to city with several different living arrangements and junk cars. However many unfortunate events that happen there’s always something Jeanette learns from them. Through trials and tribulations of always being the new kid and growing up almost homeless Jeannette has found a way to come up from this and make a name for herself as an author. Throughout her life Jeanette shows an incredible amount of intelligence and responsibility. She looks out for everyone in the family and tries to give them insight on their actions.

 Mountain Goat as she was called by her father also takes after him with her witty half glass full point of view and her resourceful inventiveness. As she grew up she became more practical and became somewhat of the head of the household and the responsible one while her parents were ignoring their responsibilities. Like when her mother went back to school to renew her teaching license and Lori went to a summer camp. Jeannette was given 200$ for that month for bills and other expenses that she budgeted out. Her father being an alcoholic asked for money and caused her to be off budget and for Jeannette to understand what her mother went through with him. She and her older sister Lori at the end of their high school careers made a plan to get out and move to New York to live a better life. 

This book is one of my top 10 favorite books. Glass Castle is so unique for the plain fact that everyone can relate to at least one part of her story. Lots of sensitive topics are touched on in this book including: abuse, addiction, sexual assault, and homelessness all through the first hand experience of Jeanette. She writes as if you’re living through her and seeing everything and experiencing everything as she did. Since this book talks about such things I would recommend it to an audience no younger than 14. I also think this book because it’s a coming of age story about Jeanette, that it should be recommended to but not limited to young women everywhere. This book also is a good indicator of toxic relationships and there are a lot of lessons and good advice to be taken from it. 

Title of the Book: Into the Wild

Author: Jon Krakauer

Number of Pages: 215

Rating: ☆☆☆☆☆

Review:

“No man ever followed his genius till it misled him. Though the results were bodily weakness, yet perhaps no one can say that the consequences were to be regretted, for these were a life in conformity to higher principles” - Walden, Or Life in the Woods. One of many passages highlighted in Chris Johnson McCandless’ plethora of a library was documented during his misunderstood and ultimately fatal adventure to Alaska. 

Chris Johnson McCandless was a very intelligent and out-of-the-box thinker that had an untameable adventurous spirit. This “call of the wild” that laid within him was ultimately his tragedy. While the reason for his death still questions many, his story leaves an undeniable imprint that cannot be erased. The seeds of adventure inside this man were planted as a child and grew ever so stronger when he aged with time. The McCandless family was fabled for traveling the country in their RV and never let an opportunity to do so go by. This was really the start of Chris’ desire to travel and nothing ever stopped him - even family secrets and disrupted relationships. 

Into the Wild is a story that captures the many different points of view of Chris Johnson McCandless. As Chris hitchhiked across many states, he met new people and he made new friends. It was these friends who were able to see the side of Chris that his own family failed to acknowledge. Chris never failed to make an impression on the people he met, some so impressionable that he changed their lives. While he lived as a wanderer, he was never a lost wanderer. 

When I read this book, I didn’t know what to expect. I thought I was going to read an account that was so famously told by various newspapers. I didn’t expect to read a story about a possibly crazy man and it narrate the personal side of it. But this story was relatable in the strangest ways. I read it and the story of a man that’s been dead for almost thirty years made a big impression on me. This book captures your attention and heart in the most unconventional way and once you're hooked, you’re in for the long haul.

Gamelife: A Memoir Review

Title of the Book: Gamelife: A Memoir
Author: Michael W. Clune
Number of Pages: 214
Rating: ☆☆☆☆☆

Review: Video games affect everyone very differently, but our experiences with video games all have something in common. We all learn something from the game; that’s why they are fun to play. In Gamelife, Michael W. Clune shares his experiences with the video games he played as a kid. Clune shares the way the games changed his perspective of himself, the people around him, and the world he was living in.
Throughout the book, Clune plays 7 different games, all with different lessons to teach him. With the game Suspended, he learns his own self worth. With The Bard’s Tale II, he discovers the importance of fantasy. In Ultima III, he finds the importance of leaving your comfort zone to allow discovery. When playing Wolfenstein, he finds comfort in becoming one with the games he plays. Playing Elite taught him the difficulty of overcoming urges to better himself. Pirates! showed him that every good experience has a bad one to end it. Finally, with Might and Magic II, he defines what is truly real, and what separates a game from real life.
The beauty of the book is the way that Clune explains the lessons he learned. Until you understand the way this book is written, it may seem like it doesn’t make any sense and that the author goes on a lot of tangents. If you take note of these tangents and keep them in mind while reading, the book will make more sense as you continue. The lessons he teaches throughout the book are shown from the perspective of the game, as well as real life. By doing this, he is able to make subtle references to his real life with the mask of the game. Clune’s style is like nothing I’ve ever read before. He describes games in ways that I would never have thought to. From 1990 to 2001, Michael suffered from addiction to heroin. I believe that his experiences with the drug helped him visualise and explain the thoughts and ideas that were in his head as a kid. Based on the way he describes playing video games as being one with the characters and losing himself in the world, I think that he is able to explain the games in this way because of his addiction.
This book is great for anyone who is willing to think outside of the box and jump into the creative world of someone who thinks in a way no one else does. This is no run of the mill memoir. On the surface it’s a tangled mess, but once you dive in and immerse yourself, you can experience the world from the perspective of a kid again. With its comedic moments and unique storytelling, this book has more than earned it’s five-star rating.

Title of the Book: Into Thin Air Author: Jon Krakauer Number of Pages: 302 Rating: ☆☆☆☆☆

Review: Into Thin Air is a reflection on unspeakable events that one man lived through. Jon Krakauer writes a first hand account of the 1996 Mt. Everest disaster, in which many people were terribly injured, scarred for life and lost their lives. Jon Krakauer was fortunately a survivor of this catastrophe, only a part of the expedition to be a journalist. Into Thin Air dives deep into the topic of the history of climbing, commercialized climbing, and the process of standing atop the world. Much of the book is constantly moving forward, there is an end goal that the limbers must reach and the book is one big build up to a breathtaking event one could only dream of… but the book is far from over as the climbers still have to get down the mountain. There is no stalling in the story, each page and line is building up to the final events just building intensity and eagerness to be there. 

Krakauer tackles this book perfectly, not only because he has a trustworthy first hand account of the events, but because of his writing style. He builds so much detail on subtopics that you learn far more than what you would expect out of a book. He dives intensely deep into previous climbers, the family lives of his colleagues, the history of the mountain and recalling previous disasters such as avalanches and independent climbers going missing. Krakauer makes the book an informative, fun, and adventurous read which makes for a once in a lifetime kind of book. 

There are moments in this book that get your heart racing, and there are others that are real tear jerkers. Such as the close calls over the ice crefaces, the determination of Scott Fischer, or even the final lines that recall the unfortunate death of a great character. Moments like this and the way Krakauer writes them are what make this book worth a read, and there are too many to count of moments like the ones I used as examples. This book is based on real events, none of it is faked or exaggerated… so if you are the type of person who enjoys a good adventure story, or even a history lesson, I highly recommend this for you. Growing up I was always a climber and I am a big fan of learning history. I have never been a big reader nor have I ever truly enjoyed it, but this book was definitely worth it and sparked my interest into a lot of new things. The examples I used are just brief glimpses at the hundreds of moments like to, but the only way you’ll truly know that is if you read it. 

The Diary of a Young Girl review

Title of the Book: The Diary of a Young Girl

Author: Anne Frank
Number of Pages:268
 Rating: ☆☆☆☆☆

Review: The Diary of a Young Girl by Anne Frank is a great historical read that gives good insight to what it was like living as a Jewish family during the holocaust. The autobiography almost all takes place in “the secret annex” between 1942 and 1944. Anne Frank at only 15 years old paints vivid pictures of both the outside life and in hiding through her diary. She details the many struggles of being a teenage girl during this time and the conditions they were forced to live in.  

In 1942, as the Jewish were being threatened by the growing Nazi invasions in Europe the Frank family was prepared to go into hiding. When Anne’s sister Margot receives a letter summoning her to a German camp they decide it is time. For the next two year they spend their time in an attic apartment behind Mr. Frank's business. They are accompanied by the Van Daan family whose father works with Mr. Frank. Anne’s diary details the many transitions they made and how they made their new lives work. As a teenage girl she writes regularly and about a wide range of topics. She describes her relationships, feelings, and even is quite comical. 

The Diary of a Young Girl is without a doubt one of the most unique books you will ever read. Not many autobiographies from the holocaust have such great detail, especially from a 15 year old girl. Though the majority of the book is depressing and gloomy, Anne brings light to many topics and will leave you with a few laughs. From history buffs to high school students this book is a great read and will leave you walking away with a new look on a very grim time period.

Title of Book:Into the Wild
Author: Jon Krakauer
Number of Pages: 224
Rating: ☆☆☆☆
Review:

Into the Wild, by Jon Krakauer, holds the story of a once rich kid turned Alaskan survivalist  named Chris McCandless and his journey into the wild along with his impact on others throughout his journey. The book follows a brilliant young man named Chris McCandless who donates all his money to charity and drops off the face of the earth to go live in the wild. Along his journey to Alaska he would take up small jobs to make just enough money to buy food. McCandless concluded that the best way to live was to live free in nature on his own. Although his journey comes to a bitter end, he lived the way he wanted to.

Compared to other books, this one takes a very unique approach as to how the story is told. Jon Krakauer tells the story of Chris McCandless in pieces that aren’t in order and helps to bring everything together as to why he decided to leave and live in the wild. Krakauer takes a journalist approach while telling the story, taking writings from McCandless’s journal, letters from those McCandless met along his journey, and interviews Krakauer conducted with those people to find out what McCandless did in time after he made his final decision. Krakauer doesn’t just focus on McCandless’s journey but also adds his own stories of his experiences in the wild. Krakauer relates to McCandless through their mutual draw to the wild.

This book would be great for all the outdoors or adventurous people. The story isn’t a practical story because it’s not in order and Krakauer adds a bit of his own stories that relate to McCandless’s creating depth and making it more intriguing. Krakauer tells stories while including his own experiences making him one of the most unique story tellers. Krakauer combines his writing background of writing articles for magazines with his storytelling making it seem like you’re reading a journal or an article entry in a magazine. Overall, this book would be great for everyone because it has a different lesson for each type of person reading it.

Stanek Into The Wild Review

Title of the Book: Into The Wild
Author: Jon Krakauer
Number of Pages: 212
Rating: ☆☆☆☆☆
Review:  J.R.R. Tolkien once wrote “Not all who wander are lost” and Chris McCandless, the main focus of this book, would certainly agree. Krakauer begins the book by telling the reader about McCandless’s death. From there the book describes how Chris got to that point as well as how Krakauer learned the information in the book. Chris grew up in a relatively wealthy family. After graduating from college he donates the rest of the fund for graduate school to charity. He hits the road and cuts ties with his whole family. Chris travels around the country, going to Mexico, and eventually became determined to go to Alaska. HIs trip to Alaska proves fatal.

What makes this book unique is the subject matter is rather mundane. McCandless is certainly not the only person who strives for adventure and on the surface a story about a man traveling around many not seem so fascinating. Yet the divisiveness of McCandless’s story and the mystery surrounding the story keeps the reader’s interest peaked throughout the novel. McCandles has a charm that clearly ensnared nearly all who met him. While some readers are charmed as well, others find his actions foolish. The book generates a lot of discussions. 

Another stand out quality of the book is Krakauer’s writing. Despite never being taught to write, Krakauer’s style is quite enjoyable. The concepts discussed and words used are quite advanced but the structure and formatting of Krakauer’s writing make his writing very accessible and interesting to read. His tone is very inquisitive that helps create a mystery on what lead him to abandon society and what caused him to die. Krakauer has the ability to turn the mundane into the fascinating. Krakauer helps to make Chris’s last few days feel like a tragedy, as he is multiple times close to different things that could have helped him survive. As the reader, we know this, but Chris has no idea. This is after we get to see Chris form some sincere connections with people like Westerberg and get to see Chris grow in his final days, learning to understand the importance of connecting with people. 

I personally really enjoyed reading this book and I would recommend this book to almost anyone, but especially those who love adventure and travel. Chris’s story serves both as inspiration and a cautionary warning for anyone who seeks those things.