Students of Professor Mary Ambrose have some reading time with the Glass Castle. For more pictures click on "Photo Album" tab above..jpg)
Professor Bridget Vaughn recommends the exciting new PBS series - Faces of America. Henry Gates Jr. presents family histories to well known Americans. These stories show families surviving despite obstacles such as war, poverty, and immigration.
Contest winners announced April 14th at the Glass Castle finale:
Writing Contest Winners
1st Place – Christopher Caldor with his poem “Tomorrow” (gift certificate of $350.00 to College Bookstore)
2nd Place – Tessa Jean-Pierre with her poem “Tell Me What is the Truth” (gift certificate of $100.00 to College Bookstore)
Honorable Mention:
“Hear Here” by Lindsay Greenwood
“Rebirth” by Jessica Cantrell
“One Young Girl” by Nicole Rozelle
“The Women Nobody Knows” by Tessa Jean-Pierre
“Black Sheep” by Kyle Buresh
“Packs” by Floyd Mitchell-Francis
Photo Contest winner
Jason Dunbar with his rendition of Rex Walls (gift certificate of $350.00 to College Bookstore)
Glass Castle by Jeannette Walls
From the book jacket: Jeannette Walls grew up with parents whose ideals and stubborn nonconformity were both their curse and their salvation. Rex and Rose Mary Walls had four children. In the beginning, they lived like nomads, moving among Southwest desert towns, camping in the mountains. Rex was a charismatic, brilliant man who, when sober, captured his children's imagination, teaching them physics, geology, and above all, how to embrace life fearlessly. Rose Mary, who painted and wrote and couldn't stand the responsibility of providing for her family, called herself an "excitement addict." Cooking a meal that would be consumed in fifteen minutes had no appeal when she could make a painting that might last forever.
Later, when the money ran out, or the romance of the wandering life faded, the Walls retreated to the dismal West Virginia mining town -- and the family -- Rex Walls had done everything he could to escape. He drank. He stole the grocery money and disappeared for days. As the dysfunction of the family escalated, Jeannette and her brother and sisters had to fend for themselves, supporting one another as they weathered their parents' betrayals and, finally, found the resources and will to leave home.
What is so astonishing about Jeannette Walls is not just that she had the guts and tenacity and intelligence to get out, but that she describes her parents with such deep affection and generosity. Hers is a story of triumph against all odds, but also a tender, moving tale of unconditional love in a family that despite its profound flaws gave her the fiery determination to carve out a successful life on her own terms.
For two decades, Jeannette Walls hid her roots. Now she tells her own story.
