Awards: Educated: A Memoir

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Award: TLA Tayshas

Evaluation of the book:

This book, being a memoir, is told, of course, from the point of view of Tara herself. However, unlike other memoirs or autobiographies that I have read, Tara does not often let out any hints about her future life and what was to come after the difficulties she described on each page. Because of this, the reader learns right along with narrator Tara; we’re right there with her when she’s a kid on the hill, when she begins to sing, when she decides she wants to go to college, when her brother abuses her, when she travels to England the first time, etc. It’s a bumpy road and Tara’s point of view drags us right along.

As Tara’s story gets further and further along, she presents us with flashbacks that keep bringing us back to stories of her deeper past. These flashbacks and the overall timeline of the story let us know that Tara’s past is still very much a part of her, even though she may have overcome the particular difficulties. She doesn’t let us forget that her past is what made her who she is.

Tara’s use of understatement also helps show us what she feels is truly important in her memoir. She mentions only offhand how good her grades are and that she wins scholarships, fellowships, and awards, but her focus is always on her family. We know, based on the fact that we’re reading her very well-written book, that she succeeded academically; what we don’t know is how her familial tensions led her to where she is today. That’s what her memoir shows is important by understating her own academic achievements.

Response:

What does the text have to do with you, personally?

I was homeschooled. Unlike Tara, I used a very structured curriculum and my mother was very attentive to my studies and my father checked in every day to make sure I was doing my schoolwork and learning a lot. That being said, I grew up hearing about “Unschoolers” and “Noschoolers” like the Westovers and was always a bit envious of them. Needless to say, this book made me appreciate the areas of my own homeschooling that made me into the person I am today while also appreciating the structure and care that my parents put into my education.

How much does the text agree or clash with your view of the world, and what you consider right and wrong?

I believe it was right for Tara to break away from her family. In my opinion, she should have done it sooner. However, this book does a good job expressing the difficulties of filial obligation and familial love. Only family can simultaneously drive us insane and yet still be the first people we want to talk to every day. Tara’s family might be crazy, but in them the reader of this book can see bits and pieces of his/her own family and can begin to understand that it’s perfectly normal to have difficulty breaking away in order to be one’s own person.

What is your overall reaction to the text?

My immediate reaction to this text was to be disturbed. But now I find myself recommending it to everyone - especially any of the people I know who have connections to homeschooling. This book sticks with you and teaches valuable lessons on the power of the mind and the strength of familial love and obligation.

Conclusion:

Tara’s story is incredibly unique. Through this memoir, she shows the incredible difficulty of choosing oneself over one’s family, even if that family is a disaster. I’d recommend this book to any reader, high school and above, who might need or want to consider their own familiar and educational situation in a new light. Tara’s story can’t help but make you feel grateful for the good that you have, or hopeful for the good that you know you can achieve.

APA Style Reference:

Westover, T. (2018). Educated: A memoir. New York, NY: Random House.