Title: Educated
Author: Tara Westover
Publisher: Hutchinson, London
Publication Date: 2018
Genre: Non-Fiction
Reviewer: Hayley Martell
Where do I even begin with this book?
Tara Westover was born at the foothills of the Idaho mountains.
Her family did not believe in medical assistance, schooling, or the government, and lived completely off the grid.
According to government records they simply didn’t exist – no school records, no medical records, no birth certificates.
Tara’s mother was a midwife and nurse (however, not trained), and her father owned a scrapyard.
Tara’s father was forever preparing for the End of Days. He had built a bunker and Tara spent her time canning peaches and rotating emergency supplies.
One part of the story that really stuck with me was when her brother sustained serious burns from an explosion at the scrapyard, and instead of seeking medical assistance her mother made a salve and just applied that.
Honestly, I’m surprised these children have made it to adulthood.
That’s just one of the many stories like that within this book.
As Tara got older, her father became more radical and her brother more violent.
When Tara was 16, she decided she wanted to learn.
She wanted to educate herself.
So, she took herself far away from the life she knew and attended both Harvard and Cambridge, much to her father’s disgust.
The first time I read this I bought it for everyone I could think of, I simply couldn’t believe this obscure way of living.
This is a story of loyalty, and what happens when you cut yourself off from the only life you know.
A beautifully written book and very engaging.
I would highly recommend it.
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