Longlisted for the Wellcome Book Prize 2019
On the highway below,the school bus rolls past without stopping.
I am only seven,but I understand that it is this fact,more than any other,that makes my family different: we do not go to school.
Tara Westover grew up preparing for the End of Days,watching for the sun to darken,for the moon to drip as if with blood. She spent her summers bottling peaches and her winters rotating emergency supplies,hoping that when the World of Men failed,her family would continue on,unaffected.
She hadn't been registered for a birth certificate. She had no school records because she'd never set foot in a classroom,and no medical records because her father didn't believe in doctors or hospitals. According to the state and federal government,she didn't exist.
As she grew older,her father became more radical,and her brother,more violent. At sixteen Tara decided to educate herself.
Her struggle for knowledge would take her far from her Idaho mountains,over oceans and across continents,to Harvard and to Cambridge. Only then would she wonder if she'd travelled too far. If there was still a way home.
Educatedis an account of the struggle for self-invention. It is a tale of fierce family loyalty,and of the grief that comes with the severing of the closest of ties. With the acute insight that distinguishes all great writers,from her singular experience 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.
Publisher: CornerstoneISBN: 9780099511021Number of pages: 400Weight: 277 gDimensions: 198 x 129 x 24 mm
MEDIA REVIEWS
'...a memoir that is fit to stand alongside classics by the likes of Jeanette Winterson and Lorna Sage,Andrea Ashworth and Patricia Lockwood...the writing soars... Educated is a compelling and ultimately joyous account of self-determination'- TheSunday Times
'Westover's journey from a remote corner of the American west to one of the world's greatest seats of learning is extraordinary'- The Times
'A remarkable memoir about triumphing over a survivalist upbringing'- The Sunday Times
'Educated is the story of a transformation so courageous,so entire,as to beggar belief.'- The Financial Times.
'...a memoir that is fit to stand alongside classics by the likes of Jeanette Winterson and Lorna Sage,Andrea Ashworth and Patricia Lockwood...the writing soars... Educated is a compelling and ultimately joyous account of self-determination'- Sunday Times,Culture Magazine
'...astonishing,harrowing and brave.'- The Express
'A dazzling example of what you can achieve if you set your mind to something...an inspirational,truly unique coming-of-age tale'- BBC Ones to Watch in 2018
'Absolutely superb...the last 100 pages were so gripping I could hardly breathe'-Sophie Hannah
'Educated is an unflinching account of love and brutality,of the strength of blood ties and the power of imagination,and of a young woman whose intellect,self-knowledge and courage illuminate every page. Both the book and its writer are remarkable in every respect'- Sarah Perry,bestselling author of The Essex Serpent
'Educated,in showing us the unstoppable power of a young women determined to make her own decisions and find her own way,is an inspiring and important tale for our times. I am still cheering her on'- Rebecca Stott,award winning author of The Days of Rain
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