Educated by Tara Westover

Tara Westover was 17 the first time she set foot in a classroom. Born to survivalists in the mountains of Idaho, she prepared for the end of the world by stockpiling home-canned peaches and sleeping with her "head-for-the-hills bag". In the summer she stewed herbs for her mother, a midwife and healer, and in the winter she salvaged in her father's junkyard.

Her father forbade hospitals, so Tara never saw a doctor or nurse. Gashes and concussions, even burns from explosions, were all treated at home with herbalism. The family was so isolated from mainstream society that there was no one to ensure the children received an education and no one to intervene when one of Tara's older brothers became violent.

Then, lacking any formal education, Tara began to educate herself. She taught herself enough mathematics and grammar to be admitted to Brigham Young University, where she studied history, learning for the first time about important world events like the Holocaust and the civil rights movement. Her quest for knowledge transformed her, taking her over oceans and across continents, to Harvard and to Cambridge. Only then would she wonder if she'd traveled too far, if there was still a way home.

Educated is an account of the struggle for self-invention. It is a tale of fierce family loyalty and of the grief that comes with severing the closest of ties. With the acute insight that distinguishes all great writers, Westover has crafted a universal coming-of-age story that gets to the heart of what an education is and what it offers: the perspective to see one's life through new eyes and the will to change it.

Paperback, 336 pages

Audiobook, 12 hours, 11 minutes

Published February 8, 2018

 by Random House Trade Paperbacks/Audible Studios

4/5 stars

This book has been out for a while, I finally listened to the audio which was read by Julie Whalen (one of my favorites). I found it captivating as well as heartbreaking.

Educated is a story told from the point of view of the author. She talks about her life in the mountains of Idaho being part of a survivalist family. There’s so much going on here with the family as they stockpile for the end of the world.

Tara is 17 years old when she enters the school for the first time. Supposedly being homeschooled, oh let’s just say that her parents have different ideas of what type of education she needs.  Living with the family, especially a father who is suspicious of Government, hospitals, and basically other people. She had a sheltered upbringing.

Educated is a well written memoir that doesn’t mince words when she describes her upbringing, whether the abuse at the hands of her brother, the illogical thinking of her father and so much more. The fact that she made it out alive is a testament to her resilience, determination and at times her ignorance towards the world she was unfamiliar with.

Definitely a book i recommend, especially in audio format, it's like Tara is telling me her story.

My copy of the audio was through Audible - it's actually the only place to get it.