For Review in December: "The Glass Castle" by Jeannette Walls

In The Glass Castle, Walls chronicles her upbringing at the hands of eccentric, nomadic parents--Rose Mary, her frustrated-artist mother, and Rex, her brilliant, alcoholic father. To call the elder Walls's child-rearing style laissez faire would be putting it mildly. As Rose Mary and Rex, motivated by whims and paranoia, uprooted their kids time and again, the youngsters (Walls, her brother and two sisters) were left largely to their own devices. But while Rex and Rose Mary firmly believed children learned best from their own mistakes, they themselves never seemed to do so, repeating the same disastrous patterns that eventually landed them on the streets. Walls describes in fascinating detail what it was to be a child in this family, from the embarrassing (wearing shoes held together with safety pins; using markers to color her skin in an effort to camouflage holes in her pants) to the horrific (being told, after a creepy uncle pleasured himself in close proximity, that sexual assault is a crime of perception; and being pimped by her father at a bar). Though Walls has well earned the right to complain, at no point does she play the victim. In fact, Walls' removed, nonjudgmental stance is initially startling, since many of the circumstances she describes could be categorized as abusive (and unquestioningly neglectful). But on the contrary, Walls respects her parents' knack for making hardships feel like adventures, and her love for them--despite their overwhelming self-absorption--resonates from cover to cover.

We will review this book at the Christmas party held at Mindy’s house on Friday, Dec. 17 at 7:00 PM.  We will review the book until 8 PM and the exchange white elephant gifts and party after 8PM. We will do the chocolate fountain again this year. Please check below for your food assignment. Let me know if you have any questions or concerns.

The Christmas party is scheduled for Friday, December 17th. We will start at 7:00 PM and review The Glass Castle. Around 8:00-8:30 we will switch to party mode. We will exchange white elephant gifts and do the chocolate fountain. Please bring a white elephant gift (don’t spend a lot of money, these are suppose to be silly) and your following food assignment. Be reminded that the list is just a suggestion. You can really bring whatever you want. Please RSVP on the blog so I can know how people to plan for. Also, jammies are encouraged.

· Mindy: chocolate and fountain

· Missy: potato chips

· Linda: cinnamon bears

· Shanna: marshmallows

· Krista: pound cake cubes

· Johanna: banana or apples slices

· Caron: pretzels

· Ann: nutter butter cookies or something with peanut butter

· Leah: pineapple chunks

· Amy: Oreos

· Angie: strawberries or brownie bites

· Becca: Gummy orange slices