Book Series: 3 Books on Growing up in Poverty

I recently inadvertently read three memoirs in a row that dealt were accounts of individuals who were raised in poverty by eccentric parents, who broke the cycle and ended up well-adjusted, successful adults.

1. Educated by Tara Westover
Tara grew up in SE Idaho in a survivalist family. They weren't so much poor as off the grid, paranoid about the government, and abusive.

The backdrop is beautiful, but what I thought Westover pulled off so well was her psychological journey. The innocence of her childhood, not questioning her crazy family and upbringing was clearly drawn as was the painful process of recognizing, then finally standing up for herself.

2. Hillbilly Elegy by JD Vance
Hillbilly Elegy follows JD through the hills of Appalachian Kentucky and Ohio. His dad was gone, his mom on drugs (like most of the people he knew), so he was raised by his tough as nails grandmother. He goes on become a Yale educated lawyer

Vance describes a culture in crisis: addiction, lack of opportunity, and a fierce competitiveness and loyalty to the culture circling the drain.

3. The Glass Castle by Jeanette Walls
Jeanette grew up with an entrepreneur turned unemployed turned drunk father, and quirky, enabling mother.

It was hearbreaking to read about the transition from Jeanette as a little girl in poverty who doesn't know any better to a young woman deeply disappointed in her parents, then flying the roost.

A few takeaways from the series:
-People really can screw up their kids, big time. It is terrible to see how profoundly the weaknesses of parents (addiction, mental illness, general selfishness) mess a kid up forever.
-On the other hand, kids really are resilient. At some point, each of these writers comes to grip with the fact that the failings of their parents are unrelated to them as kids. They each show a lot of grace and forgiveness, which makes me wonder if that is an element of their success or possibly a byproduct of writing a good story. (They say writing is therapy. You have to give parents full fair treatment)
-For each person, there were helpers along the way who gave Tara, JD, and Jeanette opportunities their parents otherwise kept from them. Teachers, religious and community leaders, extended family, siblings even.
-Each of the parents, for all their flaws, taught very fiercely the lesson: YOU CAN DO ANYTHING. I have to think that lesson, even without much other parental support, was received and internalized by the children, each of whom went on to be very successful.