This month for book club we have chosen to read “Educated” by Tara Westover. This memoir recounts one woman’s journey from growing up in an isolated village in rural Idaho to becoming an educated and knowledge-hungry woman who found the strength and power in learning.
Tara Westover was brought up by exceptionally strict and religious parents in the mountains of Idaho, where they rejected the mainstream society, including education and modern medicine. She was essentially a survivalist as a result and she did not have access to books, literature, or science. Nevertheless, and amazingly, she taught herself to read and write, and brought herself up by her proverbial bootstraps and out of that world. Once in college, she discovered a whole new world of academia, ideas, and intellect that had her hooked.
GEMs recommends this book because it really shows the power of education, and it particularly demonstrates how important education is in the lives of women. It tells the story of an exceptionally strong female character (one of the hallmarks of a GEM-recommended book club book) who inspires the reader to seek out their full potential and to help others less fortunate to reach their own goals and dreams through education.
