Most readers might expect this to be another memoir in the likes of “Educated” or “The Glass Castle”, and while there are some similarities, this memoir stands apart from the rest. As Tina reflects on her upbringing, she also attempts to understand why her father acted the way that he did. Was it his addiction making him act this way, or something else? She’s not excusing it mind you, but looking at it from an older perspective. She’s also not allowing her trauma to stain her fond childhood memories, and as someone who experienced childhood abuse, this resonated deeply with me. I found it very powerful and compelling. Tina writes many passages that are poetic and had me itching to highlight them (but as this was a library book, I wouldn’t dream of doing so). ( )

Tina Ontiveros's memoir is a tough read but it lays bare what it was like to grow up in the logging camps of the Pacific Northwest. Raised by a charming but abusive father and a mother worn down by small-town poverty, Ontiveros writes with heartbreaking honesty about family dysfunction and intergenerational trauma. ( )