Summary Although Jeannette hopes Mom’s job means things will improve at home, the family’s subsistence living remains the same. Dad maintains that he is still head of the household, so he controls Mom’s earnings, going so far as to wait outside the school on payday to drive her to the […]
Read more Summary and Analysis Part 2: The Desert Section 19Summary and Analysis Part 2: The Desert Sections 17-18
Summary Six months into his job, Dad loses it, although he insists he did so purposefully so he can focus on searching for gold. The children realize food is going to be scarce, and Jeannette and Brian take to scavenging. Jeannette sneaks into her classroom during recess to steal food […]
Read more Summary and Analysis Part 2: The Desert Sections 17-18Summary and Analysis Part 2: The Desert Sections 14-16
Summary The kids are enrolled in school and, this time, Jeannette knows better than to show off her smarts and instead remains quiet in her second-grade classroom. Dad thinks she is coasting — not making a real effort — so he has her do her homework in binary numbers, making […]
Read more Summary and Analysis Part 2: The Desert Sections 14-16Summary and Analysis Part 2: The Desert Sections 11-13
Summary One day while driving through Blythe, a police car tries to pull over the family, but Dad guns the motor and speeds away, knowing that if he gets pulled over for a broken brake light, the police will certainly discover he also has no insurance or registration. Driving wildly […]
Read more Summary and Analysis Part 2: The Desert Sections 11-13Summary and Analysis Part 2: The Desert Sections 9-10
Summary Jeannette and her siblings grow up without the myth of Santa Claus, with both parents informing them that the myth is foolish to make up for the fact that they cannot afford to buy their children nice gifts. Instead, each year, the family waits to have Christmas a week […]
Read more Summary and Analysis Part 2: The Desert Sections 9-10Summary and Analysis Part 2: The Desert Sections 6-8
Summary Four-year-old Jeannette and seven-year-old Lori sit in the family station wagon with Brian, waiting for their parents to leave a rundown rural Nevada casino. The two girls discuss how many times they’ve moved; they count eleven places. Mom and Dad return with treats for the kids and pull out […]
Read more Summary and Analysis Part 2: The Desert Sections 6-8Summary and Analysis Part 2: The Desert Sections 4-5
Summary Dad often has the family do the “skedaddle” and while he claims it is because FBI agents are after them, Mom says that it is actually to avoid bill collectors. Dad is a whiz at math and engineering, but he has no interest in keeping a job for long, […]
Read more Summary and Analysis Part 2: The Desert Sections 4-5Summary and Analysis Part 2: The Desert Sections 1-3
Summary As a precocious three-year-old, Jeannette often cooked herself hot dogs on the stovetop. One day while doing so, the gas flame catches on her dress and fire zips up her torso. Terrified, she calls for help and Mom dashes to her, wraps her in a blanket, and a neighbor […]
Read more Summary and Analysis Part 2: The Desert Sections 1-3Summary and Analysis Part 1: A Woman on the Street
Summary Jeannette Walls opens her memoir of her childhood with a scene of herself as an adult taking a cab to a party in New York City. During her cab ride she sees her mother picking through a Dumpster. Mom analyzes various items she finds, and smiles when something strikes […]
Read more Summary and Analysis Part 1: A Woman on the StreetCharacter List and Analysis Minor Characters
Lori Walls Jeannette’s older sister who is extremely intelligent and loves reading fantasy novels as a form of escape. She often sympathizes with Mom while blaming Dad for the family’s problems. Brian Walls Jeannette’s younger brother who is very protective of his sisters, independent, quiet, and thoughtful. Maureen Walls Jeannette’s […]
Read more Character List and Analysis Minor Characters