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A review by jenbsbooks
Half Broke Horses: A True-Life Novel by Jeannette Walls
3.5
I am one who did NOT love The Glass Castle. Even that, written by the author of her own life, I have to wonder about the truth of some aspects (she really has this complete memory of when she was three years old? Dialog?) This is actually a critique of most memoirs, even my own attempt at a small written history. We write what we remember, but IS that fact? I've noticed how even my own perceptions change if I write up a blog post immediately after it happened vs writing it up from memory some years afterward.
HERE - Goodreads has this book listed as nonfiction. I realize that it is "based on actual stories" but even the author in her note at the end stats "most of what I knew about her came secondhand" as her grandmother died when she was just eight years old. This was mostly based on stories her mother told about her mother. Okay, Rosemary had "an astonishing recall for details" but still. "I never aspired to historical accuracy ... more of an oral history, retelling of stories handed down, with the storyteller's traditional liberties ..." It's fiction, rooted in actual events, but fiction. Storygraph has it labeled correctly as fiction.
Beyond that ... while interesting, if people were coming to this with "fiction" eyes, I think they wouldn't care for the MC much. She comes off as a "wow, look what I accomplished, I am always right" type of woman (which is maybe how the daughter viewed her mother, especially with adoration in stories after she passed away).
Whereas with a novel, you can expect character development, an arc, some unexpected twists ... when using a life as the inspiration and attempting to stick to that, not quite as much. I mean, this DID have quite a few twists and turns and it was interesting, ultimately ... I guess if it was my OWN family history I'd be quite captivated, but reading about a random stranger, not as much. I guess that's what most reading is, but maybe I'm more judgmental when it's supposedly "real" ...
I went with the audio, and it was narrated by the author. It's been a few months and 50+ books since I listened to The Glass Castle, but I would NOT recommend reading them close together, because they feel/sound SO similar in voice (writing, and obviously in narration). I definitely needed quite a bit of time between the two to keep them at all separate in my mind.
1st person/past tense.
No proFanity. "Mormons" made an appearance. The word "sneaked" ... I smiled at the MC wanting to look at who checked out the library book before her, and wanting to track them down so she could discuss the book with them ;) I liked the title tie-in (several times).
HERE - Goodreads has this book listed as nonfiction. I realize that it is "based on actual stories" but even the author in her note at the end stats "most of what I knew about her came secondhand" as her grandmother died when she was just eight years old. This was mostly based on stories her mother told about her mother. Okay, Rosemary had "an astonishing recall for details" but still. "I never aspired to historical accuracy ... more of an oral history, retelling of stories handed down, with the storyteller's traditional liberties ..." It's fiction, rooted in actual events, but fiction. Storygraph has it labeled correctly as fiction.
Beyond that ... while interesting, if people were coming to this with "fiction" eyes, I think they wouldn't care for the MC much. She comes off as a "wow, look what I accomplished, I am always right" type of woman (which is maybe how the daughter viewed her mother, especially with adoration in stories after she passed away).
Whereas with a novel, you can expect character development, an arc, some unexpected twists ... when using a life as the inspiration and attempting to stick to that, not quite as much. I mean, this DID have quite a few twists and turns and it was interesting, ultimately ... I guess if it was my OWN family history I'd be quite captivated, but reading about a random stranger, not as much. I guess that's what most reading is, but maybe I'm more judgmental when it's supposedly "real" ...
I went with the audio, and it was narrated by the author. It's been a few months and 50+ books since I listened to The Glass Castle, but I would NOT recommend reading them close together, because they feel/sound SO similar in voice (writing, and obviously in narration). I definitely needed quite a bit of time between the two to keep them at all separate in my mind.
1st person/past tense.
No proFanity. "Mormons" made an appearance. The word "sneaked" ... I smiled at the MC wanting to look at who checked out the library book before her, and wanting to track them down so she could discuss the book with them ;) I liked the title tie-in (several times).