More Book Reports: a lot of time on the bus

The Glass Castle: by Jeannette Walls

This is an incredible memoir with the same tenacious and objective spirit of writers like Frank McCourt. I inhaled this book in less than a week (and a few bus trips to Managua-10 hours round trip). Jeannette is one of 4 and you follow her and her unique family from state to state. Her father is brilliant, a story-teller and hard worker-when he’s sober. Her naïve childhood innocence holds out longer than the average person, through the pickled fights and the broken dreams and piggy banks. The title comes from the blueprints for an actual castle her father uses as his trump card whenever he requires a good show of faith from his ever-faithful but eventually faltering family. He incentivizes the creativity of his children to hang on and believe in him a little bit longer, just one more time. This is with the backdrop of several struggling parts of the U.S.-New Mexico and California ghettos to long-gone coal mines of West Virginia and then the homeless corners of New York after all the children have left the deranged nest to find their own lives in the Big Apple. I found myself appalled, intrigued, amazed and awestruck and also laughing, sometimes at the same time. You just can’t believe that this all happened to one person, but the genuine tone and honest narrative makes it not just possible, but inspiring.  From eating out of garbage cans to fighting at school because they are the dirtiest students, I see the same spirit and infallible desire to play in the children in my site. They may be hungry, malnourished, with family webs that confound the imagination, but they still want to play soccer and braid hair.

The Good Doctor: by Damon Galgut

Did not leave as much of a lasting impression, but still a good quick read. In essence, South Africa after apartheid with a small clinic in the middle of nowhere and there is one doctor who has been there longer then the newly, fresh-off-the-jeep rookie who has come to change the world and start clinics, etc. Again, some parallels to the inevitable disillusionment of Peace Corps service with the search for personal relationships across drastic social political, and economic differences. The doctors clash over everything from ideology to what is change and what is their purpose and what are reasonable expectations given the living conditions and strife.  It’s short and bitter, but had a few too many introspective moments with not enough background information for me. However, it does bring to light the importance of the composition of the volunteer or the development worker down to the very last detail. Your character and makeup is just as important as the community you are working with and it’s not just a give and take. They are relationships and they are messy. J