Castles: A Fictional Memoir of a Girl with Scissors

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Castles: A Fictional Memoir of a Girl with Scissors

by Benjamin X. Wretlind (Goodreads Author)

3.79 of 5 stars 3.79 · rating details · 52 ratings · 28 reviews

What would you do to build your castle in the sky?

When Maggie was six, she hid from desert storms under the sink where the Comet and Windex were kept. Now twenty, she welcomes the storms. Maggie has been abused, torn apart by the sins of others and constantly feels as if she is living on the verge of some grand epiphany perhaps passed down through her Grandmother, perhaps...more

Paperback, 190 pages

Published May 11th 2011 by Createspace (first published March 23rd 2011)

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Aug 09, 2011 Ken Lindsey rated it 5 of 5 stars

Wow am I a slacker! Sorry for skipping out again last week, but I have a review for you today:)

The novel:
Castles: A Fictional Memoir of a Girl with Scissors. Castles is a is a horror/revenge story written by Benjamin X. Wretlind.

Goodreads Description:
When Maggie was six, she hid from desert storms under the sink where the Comet and Windex were kept. Now twenty, she welcomes the storms. Maggie has been abused, torn apart by the sins of others and constantly feels as if she is living on the verge...more

2 likes · like · see review

May 21, 2012 Dale rated it 5 of 5 stars

I must admit I started reading "Castles" back in march and after a few chapters I put it aside. It wasn't because it was terrible but in the beginning it felt more like a fantasy novel(which I'm not a big fan of). After reading all of the great interviews and praise for the book I felt compelled to go back and read it.

Am I glad I gave it another chance? HELL YEAH! "Castles" is a slow burning fuse that builds throughout the beginning chapters preparing the reader for the explosions that are to co...more

1 like · like · see review

Feb 19, 2013 J.L. Dobias rated it 5 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: book-shelf-10

Castles: A Fictional Memoir of a girl with Scissors by Benjamin X Wretlind.

I received this book through Amazon- free after having read a rant by the author. I enjoyed his words so well that even though this is out of my usual genre I decided to give it a try.

I admit to being somewhat squeamish sometimes- more so with movies than books. Often enough I've seen movies that have made me shut them off part way through wondering why I endured it that long. This book made me squeamish that way sometime...more

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Nov 02, 2011 Gregory Allen rated it 4 of 5 stars · review of another edition

I came across author Benjamin X. Wretlind in the twitter-sphere, clicking on an amazing blog he wrote about paying it forward. From there, I clicked on his novel Castles and read one line on Amazon: "When I was six, I hid in the corner of the kitchen, under the sink where the Comet and Windex were kept." I was captivated by that line and instantly downloaded the book before I ever knew what I was getting in to. (My 2nd book in one week that deals with such extreme topics.) I kept telling myself...more

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Jul 10, 2011 Kimberly Fujioka rated it 5 of 5 stars

Castles is a book that reads like a memoir. When you read it you believe it is true. The book is filled with believable characters that have lots of problems which they are unwilling to face. It’s hard to read because you believe it is true even though the author says it is fiction. The writing is excellent. It is set in a desert town. It is set up as several distinct stories but with the same characters. The first story involves the main character Maggie and her grandmother. Her mother and abus...more

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Jul 07, 2011 Lyle Scott Lee rated it 3 of 5 stars

If you were to read a newspaper report about a local domestic assault or rape, you might find just the name of the perp and possibly that of the victim’s, and little background of either. The crime has been committed but the reader is left to ponder how things got to this point. The novel “Castles: A Fictional Memoir of a Girl with Scissors” provides the buildup to such reports. If you’ve ever wondered how people get to the point known as ‘the heat of passion’, you might find Benjamin Wretlind’s...more If you were to read a newspaper report about a local domestic assault or rape, you might find just the name of the perp and possibly that of the victim’s, and little background of either. The crime has been committed but the reader is left to ponder how things got to this point. The novel “Castles: A Fictional Memoir of a Girl with Scissors” provides the buildup to such reports. If you’ve ever wondered how people get to the point known as ‘the heat of passion’, you might find Benjamin Wretlind’s telling of Maggie’s story both illuminating and perplexing, as I did. Maggie is someone who emphasizes that she is not stupid, but consistently contradicts this claim over the most pivotal decade of one’s life. Early on, while a mere ten-years old, she drifts between the sagely advice of her grandmother and the physical abuse of her mother, both of whom impress upon Maggie just how evil men are. However, Maggie’s choice is to become as close to a boy as much as she can. Over the next ten years, she is as drawn to men as much as Adam was to Eve sans serpent. She finds herself – if not allowing herself – to be placed in situations that will only lead to pain and suffering. Ultimately, she appears willing to follow the same path traveled by her mother – alcohol, shallow intimacy with men, followed by violent crescendos. Incidentally, the story provides enough scenes of criminality to fill a local newspaper.

The setting is aptly described with the showing of trailer park living and dusty desert monsoons. Character development is left to the view of Maggie who sees goodness only in her grandmother and not much at all in anyone else. Some boys and men appear attractive in her eyes, but they are all viewed as two-faced, or in Maggie’s case, two-tongued, which is a preoccupation that provides her with uncertainty rather than trust. Interestingly enough, for Maggie, a man’s tongue provides both metaphor and titillation. It can be used to remind her of the black eels that help clean up her messes while it can also be used to provide sexual pleasure. It’s no wonder her life is filled with confusion and at a loss for direction. Important life decisions – a good education, followed by a good job, followed by a stable loving relationship – are completely out of the question. What matters most is a castle in the sky. Hence, Maggie’s task is to find the bricks needed to build that castle. The point of clarity in which she finally understands this goal comes just at a point in her life when her grandmother is long since passed on and her mother has fallen victim to a violent crime. It’s Maggie’s turn to continue the chain of violence, disillusionment, and disconnection from the outside world.

I really wanted to empathize with Maggie and to like this well-written story, but the main character shows very little in the way of a redemptive quality to help sum up her life by the end of the story and, instead, transforms into someone similar to those men who have wronged her over the years. The only time she seems like a normal, level-headed person is when she takes an interest in learning about anatomy. But even then, the motivation is hardly based on creating an industrious future for herself. If this is the background of such people read about in newspapers, I’m perfectly willing to skim the headlines. I’d probably only skim over a headline of a successful Maggie – perhaps a graduate of forensic science – without reading the article, but with a mild sense of ‘Atta girl!’. Makes for a more fulfilling story.
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Jun 10, 2011 Bradley Convissar rated it 4 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Castles is one of those books that is tough to read. Not because of the writing, which is tight and professional, but because of the subject matter. Castles is, at its core, a coming of age story that follows a girl, Maggie, from childhood to young adulthood. It is a visceral tale on many levels, one that makes you squirm because what you are reading is so horrible, yet prevalent in the world today. It is a stark story of abuse, rape, victimization and revenge, and there isn't necessarily a happ...more Castles is one of those books that is tough to read. Not because of the writing, which is tight and professional, but because of the subject matter. Castles is, at its core, a coming of age story that follows a girl, Maggie, from childhood to young adulthood. It is a visceral tale on many levels, one that makes you squirm because what you are reading is so horrible, yet prevalent in the world today. It is a stark story of abuse, rape, victimization and revenge, and there isn't necessarily a happy ending, depending on how you read the story. The only person Maggie trusted as a child, her grandmother, dies while she is still young, leaving her to the mercies of her mother, whose mood changes as the wheels of her own life turn, and the men she brings home to fill the hole in her own life. As she grows older and watches as everything that was good thing in her life dies (the boy she loses her virginity to and the dog they shared), she follows the same path as her mother, choosing relationships that are self-destructive. The difference between her and her mother, though, is that she finally listens to the words that the ghost of her grandmother (or memory, depending on how you read it) share with her. Instructions on how to clean up the mess she has made of her life. The end of the story is open ended in my opinion. Is Maggie going mad after what she has done? Is she going to continue getting into destructive situations just so she has messes to clean up? Or, now that she has cleaned up the mess that was her childhood, is she going to try and close that chapter in her life and live on?

Castles in an interesting story about abuse and family cycles and how they affect the mindset of the people involved. People on the outside looking in may say, "It's over, grow up, make something or your life." But it's never that easy, is it? Once abuse and death and murder become staples of your life, is it possible to become "normal"? Or does that way of life warp the mind enough that there is no coming back?

I enjoyed my time reading Castles (as much as anyone can enjoy reading something of this subject matter). Ben could have been more descriptive in many of his scenes, could have turned the reader's stomach more,but thankfully, he found a nice balance between giving us enough but not too much. Just because there is rape and assault doesn't mean every second has to be described in all of its violent, ugly glory. As for typos, if there were any, I didn't notice them.

So pick up Castles. It is a well written tale designed to make you feel uncomfortable. And isn't that what good horror is supposed to do?

Bradley Convissar- author of "Dogs of War"(less)

3 likes · like · see review

Oct 14, 2011 Tammy ~NovelOpinion rated it 5 of 5 stars

Shelves: horror-suspense, speculative-fiction, indie-self-pubbed

Whoa....
I love Speculative Fiction....
I love Horror....
I LOVED this book!

I want to talk about how I felt when I started this last night.
I watched in empathy as nine year old Maggie hid in terror of a storm. Her small frame under the sink trying to protect herself. Her alcoholic mother, jeering and deriding her for her weakness. Her grandmother having a zen moment on the porch as Maggie cries.
Maggie is telling me about her life, not complaining of her circumstances but showing me the wonder in a...more Whoa....
I love Speculative Fiction....
I love Horror....
I LOVED this book!

I want to talk about how I felt when I started this last night.
I watched in empathy as nine year old Maggie hid in terror of a storm. Her small frame under the sink trying to protect herself. Her alcoholic mother, jeering and deriding her for her weakness. Her grandmother having a zen moment on the porch as Maggie cries.
Maggie is telling me about her life, not complaining of her circumstances but showing me the wonder in a child's imagination.
Maggie tells me how her grandmother loves her. She makes sure Maggie eats and is clothed and is protected. Maggie talks to me about the trailer park she lives in and the desolate desert which surrounds it giving Maggie ideas of adventure and mystery and discovery.
Through Maggie, we witness her grandmother teach Maggie about the voices in the storm. The way God uses these storms to clean up the messes that people make. Messes like the ones Maggie's mother makes with the bad men she brings home. Maggie knows, from her grandmother, that everything she suffers is another brick added to her castle in Heaven. If she makes sure she cleans her own messes then her castle will be large and wondrous, a castle where only good girls go....

I was enchanted by Maggie and the way she accepted her life with such grace. The writing in this story is so clean and fresh. I was completely focused on Maggie and her life.

Then.... Benjamin X. Wretlind lifted his big-booted foot back and kicked my ass into my skull. Right in to my skull.

Here is the book summary:When Maggie was six, she hid from desert storms under the sink where the Comet and Windex were kept. Now twenty, she welcomes the storms. Maggie has been abused, torn apart by the sins of others and constantly feels as if she is living on the verge of some grand epiphany. Then again, she may just be insane. Maggie doesn't know if the four bodies she dismembered and placed inside a rusted Volkswagen Bus are the only bricks left to her castle in the sky, but she hopes you'll understand if they're not. Castles is Maggie's story, a literary horror novel about love and redemption, belief and revenge and what brings a person to madness. Set in a nameless desert in a nameless town, it is the view into the life of a young woman who wonders if madness is really mad.

Do not assume anything when you read this book and if you have any love in you for speculative-horror fiction; you must read this.
Mr. Wretlind is asking us a question; What is madness? After reading this I have come up with more than a few answers and a whole lot of questions. None of which I will share with you my friends. I promise after reading Castles you will have your own.

Benjamin X. Wretlind is a serious talent and a force to be reckoned with. I look forward to getting the boot while reading further work from him. Grab a copy of this story and watch your ass!
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Dec 14, 2011 Step Into Fiction rated it 4 of 5 stars

Shelves: ashley

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Apr 04, 2012 E. Milan rated it 4 of 5 stars

Building Castles in the Sky
What can I say about Castles by Benjamin X. Wretlind? Based on my main criteria for reviewing I will say this, I thoroughly enjoyed this book. Simply put, Castles is just damn good. It flows well, moves quickly, had deep interesting characters, and has a plotline that I found intriguing and, at times, fascinating. I read through it in just over a day which wasn’t difficult considering its length. The book is only about 190 pages making it a shorter novel than I usually...more Building Castles in the Sky
What can I say about Castles by Benjamin X. Wretlind? Based on my main criteria for reviewing I will say this, I thoroughly enjoyed this book. Simply put, Castles is just damn good. It flows well, moves quickly, had deep interesting characters, and has a plotline that I found intriguing and, at times, fascinating. I read through it in just over a day which wasn’t difficult considering its length. The book is only about 190 pages making it a shorter novel than I usually read. However, that is far from a negative. I never felt like it was missing anything or that it was too quick. The characters have enough time to develop and the story felt complete. The author never droned on unnecessarily. For what this novel is the length felt perfect.
I do have certain tastes when reading books. I like description that draws you in and plotlines that aren’t stunted because the author is afraid to go in a particular direction. In this case I thoroughly enjoyed the author’s style and he definitely does not pull any punches. Though I felt the novel wasn’t over the top there are people who might find some of the descriptions somewhat graphic. Given the subject matter, however, I felt that the description was pertinent and relevant.
The books centers around a young girl, Maggie, who grows up hounded by mental demons. It delves into abuse and gender issues in a unique way. It does contain graphic scenes of violence. I hate spoiling books so I’ll keep the descriptions short. Maggie learns from the women of her family to perceive men as vile creatures. The men in her life are abusive and based on what she’s been taught she acts accordingly.
I found myself completely sucked into Maggie’s world. I understood her and even found myself siding with her at times. The author does a great job of melding the world around her with the world she sees. He removes barriers and allows them to interweave. His imagination is vivid and his descriptions lead you directly in almost effortlessly.
I learned after finishing the book that the novel actually began as a short story 7 years before he completed the book. I could see the polish, dedication, and love that he put into this book and I can see how it could take years for it to fully develop.
For the most part I felt it was a great read. It starts well, ends well and flows well. The second half was a bit slower for me than the first but that’s not necessarily a negative. The subject matter is not for everyone. There is graphic violence, abuse and sexual language. But if that doesn’t turn you away and you are looking for an original novel by a new voice definitely check out Castles.
4 ½ scissiors
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Oct 31, 2011 Ashley Byland rated it 4 of 5 stars

When I read the description for this book, I was very intrigued because it isn’t a normal book one would read. I was intrigued about the bodies, and this castle Maggie was trying to built. The story starts out about a little girl in the trailer park. I have to say, I’m glad this is a fictional memoir and not a real one, to think that anyone would have to go through a childhood like Maggie’s is just painful to think about. It does however read like a true memoir and I had to remind myself that th...more

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May 12, 2013 Mark Abrams rated it 5 of 5 stars

This is a fictional memoir about a troubled young girl who grows up to be a confused young woman. There is a very thin line between reality and her perceptions of it; it is a line that she crosses very often. What is a vision and what is real is often blurred in this wonderful and complex story.

I was very impressed by how the author so deftly handled the portrayal of this character. Count me among the many others who have raved about this writer. He deserves to be recognized as one of the best a...more

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Jul 13, 2011 Haresh Daswani rated it 5 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Castles held a unique setting that played in two places, it makes a book perfect for a play. I can picture the whole scene in front of me, I can picture the pain Maggie felt, as did her mother, and more interestingly, their craving for it.

It had an odd situation of one who does not defend, but seems to stay in a state of being victimized. Castles has a very strong message imparted through the lives of the three women. The metaphors and its story really embed in the reader's mind, and haunts the...more

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Apr 30, 2012 Scott Bury rated it 5 of 5 stars

Often, you can tell on the first page whether a writer knows what he or she is doing. There’s a flow, a grace to the way these writers construct their sentences that makes reading a joy.

Ben Wretlind is one of those writers, although his story is anything but joyful. Castles: A Fictional Memoir of a Girl with Scissors, fits into the “magic realism” category, although I did not know that when I started reading the book.

The story begins with Maggie at age six, living in a trailer on the edge of the...more

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Feb 05, 2012 Michael Rose rated it 5 of 5 stars

I honestly don't know how to write this review. I don't know what I can say about Castles that will be informative to the reader without exposing something that the reader really has to find out for him or herself. I can't tell you the emotions I felt while reading it because I felt all of them, often many of them at the same time. I can't even tell you what kind of a book this is: literary, horror, psychological, supernatural, allegorical, because it is all of those things and more.

But I suppos...more

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Jul 20, 2012 Angela rated it 5 of 5 stars

This book is gruesome in some places. It deals with some mature themes: violence, teen sexuality, and madness to name a few.

I wasn't sure how I felt about the narrator, but I think that was the point. She was neurotic and unpredictable, but also relatable. The voice in this fictional memoir absolutely knocked my socks off. It was simple and complicated. Innocent and jaded. Trusting and disillusioned. Truly an amazing read.

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Jul 18, 2011 Emily rated it 4 of 5 stars

Shelves: fiction, sad

'Castles' was an excellent book! I enjoyed Wretlind's descriptions - the book is written so a reader is pulled into the narrator's tale and it actually becomes believable that Maggie actually lived this life. This book may offend and upset you, but it's definitely worth the read. Not exactly what I was expecting, but definitely is a book I'll read in the future. A great, quick summer read!

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Jul 30, 2011 Darlene rated it 4 of 5 stars

I recieved this book free through GoodReads First Reads and I'm so glad that I had the opportunity to read it. This book is an easy read but very well written. It's told as a memoir from a young woman that had a lot of disturbing things happen to her as a child. Did she succumb to all the insanity in her life, or did she triumph over it? Read the book, you'll be glad you did.

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Jan 30, 2013 Melanie rated it 4 of 5 stars

Shelves: kindle

Strangely disturbing but addictive! This is truly one weird read but in all the good, horrific ways. It totally reminds me of the good old 'B' horror movies that I grew up watching, cause my parents were weird like that & allowed me to:-)

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May 01, 2013 Isabella Ellis rated it 2 of 5 stars

Generally, I like to leave thoughtful and constructive reviews. I can't even come up with something other than WTF this time.

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Jan 22, 2013 Kaie rated it 4 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: all-world-s-pain-in-one-book

Okay, after I have finished reading it, I need therapy for myself. This story feels so real and it's pretty messed up.

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Jan 16, 2012 Stephanie rated it 4 of 5 stars

http://stephsgrn.blogspot.com/2012/01...

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Jun 20, 2012 J.F. Jenkins rated it 3 of 5 stars

Well written, but disturbing content. Not sure I liked the characters much.

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Nov 19, 2011 Lindsey Lang rated it 3 of 5 stars

hmmm, i think i might wait to do a review on this one. it was ok, not exactly what i was expecting but not a bad book either.

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Feb 23, 2013 Pauline Forrester rated it 5 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Brilliant. i wanted to do that too,

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Sep 04, 2011 Sacha rated it 3 of 5 stars

I liked it, but it felt like a short story. And it was super kookamajoo.

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Jan 30, 2013 Doreen Dalesandro marked it as to-read

Shelves: horror, owned-kindle-freebie

Kindle freebie, 1/30/13

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Jan 30, 2013 Patricia rated it 1 of 5 stars

very odd book

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Apr 08, 2012 Konstantinos rated it 5 of 5 stars

I loved it. Read it within a single morning more or less. Dark and brutal, perhaps a bit disturbed but also alive and true. The story is about a young girl's view of the world and what is going around her, a view twisted by abuse, neglect and self-deprecation. No deus ex machina, no happy endings, just the cycles of agony and resignation of a trapped life. One has to read it to feel its power.

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May 07, 2013 Mai rated it 2 of 5 stars

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About Benjamin X. Wretlind

Benjamin ran with scissors when he was five. He now writes. He has been--at different times, of course--a fry cook, range boy, greens maintenance technician, reservations agent, room service attendant, editor, banquet server, meteorologist, instructor, program manager for Internet applications, curriculum developer, simulation engineer and chemical demilitarization certification coordinator.

The au...more

More about Benjamin X. Wretlind...

Books by Benjamin X. Wretlind

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“I've always believed there are moments in our lives which can be defined as a transition between the before and after, between the cause and the effect.” — 3 people liked it

“There are moments in my life that stick to my memory. I suppose it's the same for everyone—snippets of life pasted in a scrapbook for you to look over every once in a while. You look back sometimes and relive an event, a smell or a sight. You catalog these things in your head and never really look at the whole. I think you miss something grand when you don't step back and examine everything together.” — 3 people liked it

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