Burn Down the Ground

Not since The Night Circus have I actually read and finished an entire book club book in time for book club.  I think I deserve a parade, or maybe just some ice cream.

As the hearing child of two deaf parents, Kambri had an unusual upbringing, but the fact that her parents were deaf was the least of her problems.  Her father was paranoid and jealous and beat her mother.  He has a very difficult time keeping a job or staying faithful, so they moved to the middle of nowhere to be free from distraction, which did not work.  Kambri and her brother had a pretty free childhood, which lead to problems as teens and lead David, her brother, to spiral out of control and end up rehab.  Kambri on the other hand had her share of close calls, but with a determined spirit, she overcame her childhood only to have it haunt her again as an adult.

I enjoy memoirs.  Biographies, and autobiographies, tend to be stuffy and formal, while memoirs are just a listing of memories, subject to the author's point of view and  perspective.  Kambri's relationship with her father is the driving force behind this book since this is a man that is violent yet he was her loving father at some points.

For me the book lost some steam toward the end, or maybe I was getting bored.  Since this is a book about her childhood and family, once she became an independent adult, the details became a little fuzzy and I wish that she would have explored that a little more.  For instance, she was a Jose Cuervo girl, paid to party and mingle.  I would like to know how she entered such a lifestyle after seeing how alcohol effected her parent's relationship.  I'm not saying that you can't have a healthy respect for alcohol after having two addicted parents, but I would have liked to hear more about her motivations to enter this particular industry.

Parts of this book are very difficult to read, and the author does set the reader up for them.  As the book progresses and readers learn more about her father, you feel prepared for the violent side of him, since it comes out slowly and deliberately.

As a book club book, I really enjoyed it and thought it was very interesting.  I would not have picked it up on my own, but it was worth my time.  It is a memoir full of heart and forgiveness and will hopefully generate some discussion.

Speaking of discussion--I will be hosting book club this week.  We'll see how this goes.  I'm not much of a hostess, but hopefully with a few snacks and some lovely drinks, it will be a good night.

Happy Reading!