Book Review: Defending Jacob by William Landay

Fiction. I read this novel because it was on the list for CLPL fiction book club last year (April 2014), and I could not go to it, so I was catching up.  I read it in January 2015.  This would be a good one for people who like crime novels that do not have too much gore, with a bit of mystery and thriller tossed in with the questions of how far parents will go to believe their children no matter what, and to defend them no matter what they find out.

The family in the novel consists of the father and attorney Andy Barber, his wife Laurie, and their son Jacob who is accused of stabbing another boy in a park.  There is much back and forth in this book on whether or not Jacob did it, if his parents believe him, if the court will believe him, and whether or not we as the reader, following along with Andy narrating to us, believe in Jacob's innocence or not.  At one point there seems to be a candidate who is more likely than Andy to have committed the crime (a pedophile in the neighborhood), but I constantly wavered back and forth right along with the narrator.

Like any review of a suspenseful book, one struggles with what to include and what not to include, so I will say it is worth the read, especially if you like court related drama, and I will say it has a humdinger of an ending, one I did not see coming at all.

And so it goes...

Book Review: The Glass Castle by Jeannette Walls

Read for book club (9/2010) at Crystal Lake Public Library. This book is the memoir of writer and journalist Jeannette Walls. It is an honest but sentimental look at her life growing up in a poor and dysfunctional family that lived at first out west in Arizona and then moved to rural West Virginia. Eventually she strikes out on her own and moves to NYC in hopes of a better life.

At first you kind of want to shake her and ask her why she was so loving and kind to her parents! Her father was a drunk and a dreamer who came up with nutty ideas and rarely accomplished a thing. Her mother was an artist who, in her own mind, sacrificed life and fun for her children. In reality he was just a drunk who made things up and she was a lazy spoiled brat who acted like she was 12 years old and had no responsibilities. They were appalling and should be ashamed of themselves! They weren't creative, they were just drunk and pathetic. For example, the idea where the memoir gets its name, her father tells them he is going to strike it rich and build them a dream home. They decide to proceed and start excavating the ground behind their shabby home, only to end up having it sullied by pitching the trash into it because they don't pay any of their bills. The mother finds it a waste of time to take care of anything domestic (like say feed her children) because her time could and should be better spent painting.

I was thrilled when Jeannette finally got the heck out of there and went to NYC, and was devastated when her useless and crazy parents showed up. They don't however sponge of her but rather choose to be homeless and squat in abandoned buildings and fight for their rights to do so. I cannot believe how gracious she was about such awful people who should have had their children taken away permanently and placed into protective services (an attempt was made but didn't stick). She lovingly recalls how he would teach them things (he was educated and a smart man) and how her mother was a free spirit. Personally, if these were my parents, I would have spent every page bashing them for their selfishness and despicable behavior.

It was a great read and one that spurred forth some interesting discussions in our group! I would recommend this to those that like memoirs and to those who want to appreciate parents who actually cared about them, even if they weren't perfect and dysfunctional, because they will seem like saints after you read about these two!

And so it goes...