#1 NEW YORK TIMES, WALL STREET JOURNAL, AND BOSTON GLOBE BESTSELLER • One of the most acclaimed books of our time: an unforgettable memoir about a young woman who, kept out of school, leaves her survivalist family and goes on to earn a PhD from Cambridge University “Extraordinary . . . an act of courage and self-invention.”—The New York Times NAMED ONE OF THE TEN BEST BOOKS OF THE YEAR BY THE NEW … Times
NAMED ONE OF THE TEN BEST BOOKS OF THE YEAR BY THE NEW YORK TIMES BOOK REVIEW • ONE OF PRESIDENT BARACK OBAMA’S FAVORITE BOOKS OF THE YEAR • BILL GATES’S HOLIDAY READING LIST • FINALIST: National Book Critics Circle’s Award In Autobiography and John Leonard Prize For Best First Book • PEN/Jean Stein Book Award • Los Angeles Times Book Prize
Born to survivalists in the mountains of Idaho, Tara Westover was seventeen the first time she set foot in a classroom. Her family was so isolated from mainstream society that there was no one to ensure the children received an education, and no one to intervene when one of Tara’s older brothers became violent. When another brother got himself into college, Tara decided to try a new kind of life. Her quest for knowledge transformed her, taking her over oceans and across continents, to Harvard and to Cambridge University. Only then would she wonder if she’d traveled too far, if there was still a way home.
“Beautiful and propulsive . . . Despite the singularity of [Westover’s] childhood, the questions her book poses are universal: How much of ourselves should we give to those we love? And how much must we betray them to grow up?”—Vogue
NAMED ONE OF THE BEST BOOKS OF THE YEAR BY The Washington Post • O: The Oprah Magazine • Time • NPR • Good Morning America • San Francisco Chronicle • The Guardian • The Economist • Financial Times • Newsday • New York Post • theSkimm • Refinery29 • Bloomberg • Self • Real Simple • Town & Country • Bustle • Paste • Publishers Weekly • Library Journal • LibraryReads • Book Riot • Pamela Paul, KQED • New York Public Library
more
Amazing. Months later I am still thinking about the events in the book. A must read!!
best read in a long time….excellent
It took me a bit to get into this book but once I did, I really enjoyed it. I struggled a bit with how so many of the characters keep choosing to be involved with abusive people. It is a very inspirational story!
The fortitude of this young women is remarkable. She is resilient and so much wiser than one might expect considering her upbringing
One of the finest books I have read!!! The truth of her life is tragic and painful. She became an amazing woman completely on her own in spite of tremendous hardship. This is courage at its best! I am anxious to see what she decides to do with the rest of her life. She is an awesome example of overcoming significant odds.
There are many holes in the author’s story. I feel as though much of this is fiction.
Great book my book club’s favorite this year.
An amazing book. Beautifully written.
This book comes up in my mind, in discussions, among readers, within family—all over. It’s memorable.
The story of a young woman’s quest for an education in a family of survivalists who thought Randy Weaver (Ruby Ridge) was unfairly persecuted. Some parts about drove me crazy with Westover’s difficulty putting her past behind, as her emotional life still had many ties to her past. It’s pretty common among children from dysfunctional families–the difficulty of shedding the old persona unsuited for a modern world. I kept wondering why if she had such a push to improve herself that she kept letting her old life pull her down.
Loved this book as so many people did. I couldn’t put it down – the characters are well developed and you fall in love.
Excellent!
This book was both shocking at times and inspirational. A very good read.
Excellent
I was extremely frustrated with the father and thought less of the mother when she wouldn’t stand up for her kids. A tragic story any way you look at it.
One of the best I’ve read.
An interesting and inspirational life. Ms. Westover is a talented writer and her story moves at a quick pace. Highly recommended.
What a crazy upbringing! This book gives all of us hope for the future–that no matter how screwed up one’s life is while growing up, we can persevere.
Just another “poor me” memoir
This is one of those books that are hard to get through, but hard to put down. It is the inside story of life in the home of a bi-polar father who uses religion to derive power and wield it over his family; about his paranoia, about his hubris that leads to several tragic situations. It is about a son who may likewise be bi-polar, and at the least is a narcissist, one of those men who can excuse violence as necessary, and alternate remorse with justification. It is about a brainwashed daughter who manages to escape and miraculously (and through kind mentors) enters the world of higher (and the highest) education circles. It is tragic and triumphant.