Book Review: Half Broke Horses

Half Broke Horses by Jeannette Walls

My rating: 4 of 5 stars
There is something to be said for a book with wonderfully brief chapters. Not only does the book fly by, but if especially captivating you find yourself reading more than you intended, because hey, it's just two more pages! But two more pages packed full of life and wonderment. It makes for an immensely enjoyable read.

Such is the case with "Half Broke Horses" by Jeannette Walls, the author of the beautiful memoir "The Glass Castle". This story from her is actually a memoir/biography of her grandmother, Lily Casey Smith, a larger-than-life character who jumps off the pages of the book into your heart. You can't help but love this character.

Lily grows up in a different time, but her ideals and attitude is what feminism should be all about. She always stands up for herself, sure of who she is and though she doesn't always know where she's headed, she knows that she'll be able to adapt. She epitomizes that American "can-do" attitude and always finds a solution to the problems that she encounters - and she encounters many, many problems.

The other interesting aspect of the book is that you clearly see Walls' roots and the why behind her parents' attitudes toward life itself. You see its development through Lily's narration and many of the lessons that she imparts to her children end up finding their way into the Walls family as well.

This is a delightful read and another great book from Walls. It makes me want to go back and read "The Glass Castle", as this seems like a prequel for that back. I highly, highly recommend it.

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Thoughts for a Thursday

There have been a lot of thoughts running through my head these past few days. But I always have problems articulating my thoughts, so I'm going to try to use this post today to sort through some of them.

*Praying in Color
I just finished reading this book (you can see a review of it, if you click on my goodreads link on the side) by Sybil Macbeth and it is wonderful. It has introduced a whole new prayer form to me - prayer in the form of art and in the process of creating a drawing. This really appeals to me because I love art and creating things and I also love the idea of praying in whatever we do. She even includes a chapter of how to "Pray in Color" on the computer. It just is a really, really neat idea and prayer form and I'm excited to really start practicing it. Sybil also a good friend of Phyllis Tickle's, who I know is greatly admired by a lot of my friends.

*The Glass Castle by Jeannette Walls
I finished reading this book on Tuesday night and it is an amazing memoir. But I think the thing that has stayed with me since reading it is the depth of love that Walls has in relating her story about her family. The things that she and her siblings endured because of her parents' choices and personal battles, could have embittered them and created a wellspring of hate, but that is never apparent in the rendition of the story. What is apparent is the love that Walls had for her siblings, her mother, and most of all, her father - because the events that Walls relates could not have been written without it. That love shouldn't have existed, but it did, and it is an amazing testament to the strength and bonds of familial love - in spite of everything - horrible, awful things that no one should have to endure.

*The Oppressiveness of Getting Older
I know I shouldn't let my age worry me. There are plenty of people who are older than I am, but I can't shake this feeling that I've been living with ever since I turned 26 that things should be different than they are. That my life should look a lot different than it does. Like, what am I doing living in my small, provincial town during my twenties? That I should be in a different job, having a more important title, more important duties and responsibilities, more this, more that. That I should look like I am successful and important and have accomplished all of these world-changing things that I look around and see other people my age doing. That there should be a PhD or MBA after my initials.

Where does this come from? It would be easy to blame my parents and the pressure I feel from them to always go that extra step. But I am the one that gives them that power - I can reject or internalize their words - that is my choice. Or I could blame it on the fact that I was named "Most Likely to Succeed" in High School. The fact is, this is a blatant lie that I am half-believing from Satan. But I am really struggling with trying to see past this lie and be content with the life that I have right now.

I was talking about this feeling the other night with one of my friends and she was relating to me that it doesn't really seem to matter what point or age in life you are in, this feeling that "I should be something else" is always there, lurking under the surface. It is something that we have to constantly fight against and know that our worth doesn't lie in what we do or don't do or haven't done. And I know this in my head - I really do - it just is hard to look past this lie right now and believe it in my heart.