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. Description in Spanish: El castillo de cristal es una notable memoria de fortaleza y redencion. Es tambien, una mirada reveladora a una familia que es a la vez profundamente disfuncional y tremendamente viva, vibrante. El padre, Rex es un hombre carismatico y entusiasta, que logra transmitir a sus hijos la pasion por vivir. Les ensena fisica, geologia, les cuenta historias. Pero Rex es alcoholico, y cuando esta ebrio se convierte en una persona destructiva y poco de fiar. La madre es un espiritu libre, una pintora muy orgullosa de su arte que aborrece la idea de una vida convencional y que no esta dispuesta a asumir la responsabilidad de criar a sus hijos. Los Walls son una familia errante. Viven aqui y alla y sobreviven como pueden. Los ninos aprenden a cuidar de si mismos, se protegen unos a otros, y finalmente consiguen salir del circulo infernal en que se convierte la familia para marcharse a Nueva York, seguidos de sus padres que optan por la indigencia. En el camino quedan noches al aire libre en el desierto, pueblos donde acuden durante una semana a la escuela, vecinos que los ayudan y abusos de todo tipo. El castillo de cristal es una historia impregnada del amor de una familia que ama y que tambien abandona, que es leal y al mismo tiempo decepciona.