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. A regular contributor to MSNBC.com, she lives in New York and Long Island and is married to the writer John Taylor. |
Annotation Focuses
Finding our voices: prereading
Where I'm From Poem: Click HERE for examples and description of the process
Poem Templates: Template 1, Template 2
Poem Templates: Template 1, Template 2
Performance poems
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“Where I’m From” Poem Assignment
After you have written your final draft of your poem, we will have a “read around” with the whole class.
“Read around” presentations: Thursday and Friday, August 25 & 26, 2016
Final draft due: Thursday, August 25, 2016
- Prewrite. Before you begin your draft poem, you will be asked to answer some questions and list a variety of items from your past and present.
- Please make sure you use the language(s) of your home, family, neighborhood, etc. Go back to your childhood.
- Include sounds, smells, texture, colors, etc. Bring in detail that has metaphor. Get very specific; for example, don’t just write the word flower, use instead the flowers’ specific names, colors, fragrance, shape, etc.
- Note: Remember it is the details that give away who the writer is.
- Write. Write a draft of your poem. You can use a connecting phrase like “I am from” in order to help you with the flow of the poem. End the poem with a line or two that ties your present to your past, your family, and your history.
After you have written your final draft of your poem, we will have a “read around” with the whole class.
“Read around” presentations: Thursday and Friday, August 25 & 26, 2016
Final draft due: Thursday, August 25, 2016
Connections to the Glass Castle
"Po' Boy Blues" by Langston Hughes
When I was home de Sunshine seemed like gold. When I was home de Sunshine seemed like gold. Since I come up North de Whole damn world's turned cold. I was a good boy, Never done no wrong. Yes, I was a good boy, Never done no wrong, But this world is weary An' de road is hard an' long. I fell in love with A gal I thought was kind. Fell in love with A gal I thought was kind. She made me lose ma money An' almost lose ma mind. Weary, weary, Weary early in de morn. Weary, weary, Early, early in de morn. I's so weary I wish I'd never been born. |
"Richard Cory" by Edwin Arlington Robinson
Whenever Richard Cory went down town, We people on the pavement looked at him: He was a gentleman from sole to crown, Clean favored, and imperially slim. And he was always quietly arrayed, And he was always human when he talked; But still he fluttered pulses when he said, "Good-morning," and he glittered when he walked. And he was rich--yes, richer than a king-- And admirably schooled in every grace: In fine, we thought that he was everything To make us wish that we were in his place. So on we worked, and waited for the light, And went without the meat, and cursed the bread; And Richard Cory, one calm summer night, Went home and put a bullet through his head. |
Connections to The Glass Castle: Rose Mary Walls Analysis
Rose Mary's Paintings: blog
New York Times: How Jeannette Walls Spins Good Stories out of Bad Memories
Information on Bipolar Disorder
Information on Hoarding Disorder
Information on Schizophrenia
Information on Anxiety Disorder
Information on Borderline Personality Disorder
New York Times: How Jeannette Walls Spins Good Stories out of Bad Memories
Information on Bipolar Disorder
Information on Hoarding Disorder
Information on Schizophrenia
Information on Anxiety Disorder
Information on Borderline Personality Disorder