EDUCATED, A Memoir
by Tara Westover
Several people told me that I really needed to read Educated. When I finally began to read it, I wondered if it could possibly live up to all the hype. Well, add me to the book’s long list of admirers. Educated will draw you in and bowl you over. It is the true story of Tara Westover, the youngest child of seven, who was raised by survivalist parents in Idaho. Convinced the government was out to get them, her parents never sent her to school. She never saw a doctor or had any vaccinations. She worked in her father’s junkyard and spent her first 17 years preparing for the end of times.
In a twist of good fortune, Westover’s older brother convinced her to take the ACT test and apply to Brigham Young University. Since her homeschooling had been spotty at best (and non-existent for many years), she taught herself algebra and scored high enough on her second attempt at the ACT to be accepted to BYU. Her account of her introduction to the outside world – once she got to university - and how she overcame all the deficiencies in her education is fascinating.
While at university, Westover was selected to attend a semester abroad program at Cambridge University and after graduating from BYU, returned to Cambridge to get a masters and eventually a PhD – by way of Harvard, where she was a visiting scholar. From the moment she left home for school, however, her parents were relentless in their criticism of her and condemned her for leaving. In fact, the entire account of Westover’s life is rife with examples of extreme emotional – and sometimes even physical – abuse at the hands of both her parents and some of her siblings.
Despite the heartbreaking descriptions of much of her childhood, Westover stuns with her descriptions of how much love she feels for her family. That she was able to achieve such incredible feats makes this an uplifting story you will never forget. (Liz)
A SECOND HELPING
My mom reviewed Educated by Tara Westover last August and also chose it as one of her top 5 of 2018. I thoroughly enjoyed it and found Westover a compelling narrator for whom the reader cheers throughout. However, based on what I had heard, I was expecting much more about her encounters with the wider world and found myself disappointed that 2/3 of the book was set in her survivalist hometown. (Lily)
