https://padlet.com/377265/jdjqtr9ckt6e Short descriptions of major themes from the book. en-us 2019-03-01 19:58:10 UTC 2025-05-10 15:26:16 UTC hello@padlet.com https://padlet-assets.s3.amazonaws.com/icons/Carfront.png 377265 https://padlet.com/377265/jdjqtr9ckt6e/wish/339085083 This picture correlates to the theme of chaos and order because it represents the children watching their lives go by as they have no control over the crazy things that are happening to their family.]]> 2019-03-07 20:35:02 UTC https://padlet.com/377265/jdjqtr9ckt6e/wish/339085083 377265 https://padlet.com/377265/jdjqtr9ckt6e/wish/339085699 This image represents the stars that Rex wants to "gift" Jeannette for Christmas. This is an unusual present, but Rex claims it is okay because his children are specia]]> 2019-03-07 20:36:42 UTC https://padlet.com/377265/jdjqtr9ckt6e/wish/339085699 377265 https://padlet.com/377265/jdjqtr9ckt6e/wish/339086138 The shattering glass represents the broken promises that Rex makes to his children a number of times throughout the book. ]]> 2019-03-07 20:37:48 UTC https://padlet.com/377265/jdjqtr9ckt6e/wish/339086138 377265 https://padlet.com/377265/jdjqtr9ckt6e/wish/339086268 The skyline represents Jeannette's new life in New York City as she becomes an adult.]]> 2019-03-07 20:38:10 UTC https://padlet.com/377265/jdjqtr9ckt6e/wish/339086268 377265 https://padlet.com/377265/jdjqtr9ckt6e/wish/339087038 The Walls family consists of six members total. Rex and Rose Mary are the mother and father of their four children Lori, Jeannette, Brian, and Maureen. The family is constantly moving around from place to place because their father, Rex, is convinced that the FBI is after them. The Walls fall behind on bills because Rex cannot keep a job and Rose Mary refuses to work. Jeannette is forced to eat a stick of margarine at one point because there is no other food in the house. When Jeannette was just three years old, she caught on fire by cooking hot dogs at the stove for herself because she was hungry. Rex and Rose Mary are constantly fighting, and Rex is an alcoholic who uses the families funds on alcohol rather than a place to stay or food for that matter. Jeannette and Brian are both molested at a young age by two different members on Rex's side of the family. ]]> 2019-03-07 20:40:13 UTC https://padlet.com/377265/jdjqtr9ckt6e/wish/339087038 377265 https://padlet.com/377265/jdjqtr9ckt6e/wish/339092019 The two Walls parents, Rex and Rose Mary are far from ordinary. Their parenting is far from responsible, caring, or socially acceptable for that matter. Rex jumps from job to job, and is an alcoholic who truly believes that the FBI is after him, resulting in the family moving around very often. Rose Mary prefers painting over practically any other responsibility she is obligated to partake in, including feeding her own children or getting a job to support her family. The two are shelter-resistant, and do not like to follow rules. For birthday's, rather than getting his children presents, he offers them stars in the sky, and manages to convince his children that they are special because only his children would be accepting of a gift like that.]]> 2019-03-07 20:54:27 UTC https://padlet.com/377265/jdjqtr9ckt6e/wish/339092019 377265 https://padlet.com/377265/jdjqtr9ckt6e/wish/339096457 This image of people drinking together and cheering represents the dinner scene at the end of the book where everyone cheers to Rex.]]> 2019-03-07 21:07:15 UTC https://padlet.com/377265/jdjqtr9ckt6e/wish/339096457 377265 https://padlet.com/377265/jdjqtr9ckt6e/wish/339096551 Throughout the length of the story, Rex brings up his plan to build his family a home made entirely from glass. His very own "Glass Castle." His children draw the plans with him, and even go as far as digging up the foundation. However, when Jeannette sees that the hole that they dug up is just being used as a garbage heap, she begins to realize that there was never really going to be a Glass Castle. It was just a broken promise.]]> 2019-03-07 21:07:35 UTC https://padlet.com/377265/jdjqtr9ckt6e/wish/339096551 377265 https://padlet.com/377265/jdjqtr9ckt6e/wish/339098167 After Lori finally makes her escape from Welch, West Virginia, Jeannette decides that it is now her time to leave. She wants to move to New York with her sister to finally get away from her troubling past, to start a new life. She raises enough money to go, and she takes the first bus out. In New York, she immediately finds a job at a burger shop, and she helps Lori out with her share of rent. In her senior year of high school, Jeannette gets a job at a local newspaper company. She loves reporting. However, her boss encourages her to go to college because he knows that she can go on to do better things, she just needs to realize that herself. Jeannette graduates high school, and when she is struggling to pay for college tuition, Rex comes up with the remaining balance that Jeannette needs to finally go. The act of raising money to become financially stable enough to make an escape from her troubling life at home and move to an entirely different state is a huge step in coming-of-age for Jeannette. She has always taken care of herself, but when she finally carries out adult actions such as moving away, getting a job, graduating high school, getting into a private university, and finally being able to pursue her career goal, there is no doubt that she did not feel some sense of accomplishment.]]> 2019-03-07 21:12:40 UTC https://padlet.com/377265/jdjqtr9ckt6e/wish/339098167 377265 https://padlet.com/377265/jdjqtr9ckt6e/wish/339471843 Ten years after Rex's funeral, Jeannette and her second husband, John, invited Brian and his daughter, Lori, and Rose Mary over to her new house for Thanksgiving dinner. Maureen was still in California, as she does not keep in contact with the family very much anymore. At dinner, they all started talking about some of Rex's escapades. Taking Jeannette into a cheetah's cage at a zoo and petting it, taking the kids demon hunting, and giving them stars for Christmas presents. John decided that they should all give a toast to Rex. Rose Mary took the opportunity to raise her glass. "I've got it." she said. "Life with your father was never boring." Jeannette could almost hear her father laughing about the comment that her mother made as they all raised their glasses to him. I believe that this is a form of acceptance for the family as a whole. ]]> 2019-03-08 20:24:00 UTC https://padlet.com/377265/jdjqtr9ckt6e/wish/339471843 377265 https://padlet.com/377265/jdjqtr9ckt6e/wish/339483218 The image of someone's hands holding a freshly sprouted plant represents new beginnings and self-sufficiency. ]]> 2019-03-08 21:06:08 UTC https://padlet.com/377265/jdjqtr9ckt6e/wish/339483218 377265 https://padlet.com/377265/jdjqtr9ckt6e/wish/339483496 There were many instances throughout the book that showed at least three of the Walls children could be self-sufficient, and even Rex at one point. Lori was the first of the kids to make her escape. She moved to New York, got an apartment, a job, went to school, and even paid for fencing classes herself. Then, Jeannette made her escape. She moved to New York City with her sister, got a job as a writer for a small newspaper company, finished high school, and went to college. Brian was second to last in moving to New York, before Maureen, but he was the last of the kids to prove himself as self-sufficient. He finished high school and eventually pursued his dream of becoming a police officer. He eventually began his own family and has a daughter, despite divorcing his wife later on. At one point in the book, a while after Rex and Rose Mary moved to New York City as well, Rex got a job at the resort after being in the hospital. He was staying sober and he was finally able to afford a real place to life for himself. While this didn't last long due to Rose Mary convincing Rex to come back to live their old lifestyle, Rex was able to prove himself for a short time as self-sufficient, something he lived his entire life avoiding.]]> 2019-03-08 21:07:31 UTC https://padlet.com/377265/jdjqtr9ckt6e/wish/339483496