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156th out of 856 books
—
1,224 voters
Change Me into Zeus's Daughter: A Memoir
Change Me into Zeus's Daughter is a haunting and ultimately triumphant memoir about growing up poor and undaunted in the South. With an unflinching voice, Barbara Robinette Moss chronicles her family's chaotic, impoverished survival in the red-clay hills of Alabama. A wild-eyed, alcoholic father and a humble, heroic mother along with a shanty full of rambunctious brothers...more
Paperback, 320 pages
Published
July 31st 2001
by Scribner
(first published September 12th 2000)
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Fiercely honest coming of age novel of growing up poor and with parents that in their own ways are unable to provide for the needs of their children. It is a difficult book to relate to if one had a fairly normal/good childhood; but there is humor interspersed with the tragedy which keeps the book from becoming too heavy with despair and anger.
Although, it touches on heavy topics it is well written and opens up those doors that books to to let you become aware of lives that you yourself will no...more
Although, it touches on heavy topics it is well written and opens up those doors that books to to let you become aware of lives that you yourself will no...more
Rather than compare this memoir to Angela's Ashes, I think that I would draw a comparison to Mary Karr's The Liars' Club. The books are quite similar: young girl in the south growing up in poverty with an abusive/drunk father and an oddly artistic/educated mother who doesn't quite fit the picture. Unlike Karr's poetic lyricism, though, Moss sticks to the facts. She describes her childhood growing up dirt poor in rural Alabama with her 7 brothers and sisters in exhilarating detail, recollecting t...more
This was an absorbing, harrowing memoir of a girl growing up in a very poor family with an alcoholic father. I grew up with an alcoholic father, too, so some of what Moss experienced was familiar to me, but my dad was Ward Cleaver compared to hers. Her father was a self-absorbed sadist. It's amazing to me that his children still loved him and mourned him when he died.
Barbara's father spent money on booze even before feeding his family. She was so malnourished that her face was deformed, and as...more
Barbara's father spent money on booze even before feeding his family. She was so malnourished that her face was deformed, and as...more
Sep 26, 2010
Claudia
rated it
4 of 5 stars
Recommended to Claudia by:
Alex and Katie
Shelves:
memoir
What a powerful memoir of a truly harrowing childhood. Before GLASS CASTLE, there was this. Barbara Moss was one of eight children raised in abject poverty by a drunkard of a father and an inegmatic mother who, by not protecting herself and her children, seemed to condone the abuse: "She seemed to crave him as much as he craved alcohol." Barbara suffered physically for her neglect and malnutrition: Her teeth and face were disfigured, causing her more emotional suffering.
The writing here is fierc...more
The writing here is fierc...more
Nov 07, 2012
Traci Domergue
rated it
5 of 5 stars
Recommends it for:
everyone, young Mothers
Recommended to Traci by:
my Mama and a friend from work
I found this book written by Barbara Robinette Moss mesmerizing to say the least. I am also from the same part of Alabama as she. Even though my own childhood was quite different than hers, I felt myself so into her world. I wasn't pitying her (she was proud) but Empathy is the emotion I had for this family. She tried so hard to hold onto her hopes and dreams. I admire that. Eight children depending on their dirt-poor parents (Dad being the alcoholic) and Mom being the proud yet singlehandedly g...more
This book is recommended for anyone who likes an incredibly well written book about another starving family in the South where the men drink and the women suffer and get pregnant. Its just not my favorite type of memoir.
I thought Barbara Robinette Moss did a great job of making a palatable story of a her childhood memories of living in fear of a disturbed alcoholic father. She masterfully wove in the good and hopeful things her family experienced in their deeply bonded love for one another--even for their violent father. It was hard to put down. The author was very honest about her feelings and her observations of her family, but non-judgmental. So there's no easy pigeon-holing any of these interesting characte...more
A couple of spoilers coming. This is a really awesome book. the author was one of 7 children in a very dysfunctional family. The abusive, violent alcoholic father was allowed to abuse the children by their mother, who belatedly rebelled when he started fooling around with another woman. Barbara experienced things that would fell a lesser person, and kept fighting, managing to get herself a degree from Drake University which frankly seemed an impossible dream thru much of the book. I really liked...more
This is not a typical autobiography but rather the telling of things that the author and her brothers and sisters experienced growing up. I would have enjoyed it better had the stories been written in a sequential order but they were not. Still, it was an interesting book and quite a testimony to the strength of the human spirit as well as the desire to love our parents no matter what. The living conditions and poverty that an alcoholic father and codependent mother lived with and thrust upon th...more
I picked this up because Amazon recommended it to me because I had read The Glass Castle. I had also read some reviews and people compared it a lot to Glass Castle. This book is a little choppy. Unlike The Glass Castle, which somewhat goes in order of the narrator's life...this book jumps around a lot. Each chapter is not connected to the one before or after. Barbara's father was a crazy alcoholic and everyone in the family was afraid of him. Barbara had a disfigured face that left her feeling l...more
This is a great book and also so revealing of the damage combat vets do to their families without having any idea on either side that it is shrapnel from the war. Alcoholism is the commonest "effort to avoid thoughts or feelings associated with the trauma," one of the diagnostic criteria for PTSD. For a child born with a deformed face, neglect, starvation, and craziness were the norm. The book is a stunning read and illuminates the pains and pride of poverty. I give it five stars.
This is the first memoir written by Barbara Robinette Moss... and should probably be read before her subsequent memoir, Fierce. However, I read them out of order... and still enjoyed both books. Change Me into a Zeus's Daughter details the childhood/young adulthood of a girl growing up in an impoverished family in the deep South... with an abusive, alcoholic father. Fierce deals more with how the author's early-life experiences influenced her adult experiences.
This book made me want to run to my parents and thank them for being responsible, caring, educated people who placed my well-being above their own.
It is a difficult book to relate to if one had a fairly idyllic childhood; but the humor interspersed with the tragedy keeps the book from becoming too heavy with despair and anger.
The author has an amazing talent for capturing moments in time and sharing them with wit, grit, and pathos to her audience.
It is a difficult book to relate to if one had a fairly idyllic childhood; but the humor interspersed with the tragedy keeps the book from becoming too heavy with despair and anger.
The author has an amazing talent for capturing moments in time and sharing them with wit, grit, and pathos to her audience.
Got this book from my daughter and I have to say, it is a wonderful book, if a bit sad. It is a true story that when you finish reading it you will cheer and thank God for your world as it will seem like paradise to you. I loved the way it was written and knowing that it is a true story made me really want to read more from this author. If you like stories of the Appalachian people and the 193-1940's era you will really like this book.
What constitutes "family" comes in all shapes & sizes - and I always enjoy the opportunity, through someone's memoirs, to be a "fly on the wall." This singular life, unlike mine & revealing in its fierce honesty, held my interest from beginning to end. The author, a survivor, takes the pain of her life and gives it words, thus giving us a gift. Knowing she is alive today & no doubt still holding much pain, I wish her well.
This memoir reminded me a lot of The Glass Castle. Barbara was born into a family of an alcoholic and abusive father, stoic and poetic mother, and lots of kids. They were impoverished in the South, and Barbara lived with a face that she likened to a mummy - twisted with malnutrition and tooth decay. It amazes me that any of them survived, but survived they did, and luckily, Barbara knows how to tell a story! Our book club enjoyed talking with amazement and sometimes horror about what this family...more
This must be the year I read heartwrenching stories about girls with facial deformities. First, Roadsong, then Truth and Beauty and now this book. A cross between Glascastle and Roadsong, it limns exquisitely the horrific state of being an ugly, underparented, poor kid in the rural south. Some of the episodes are beyond explaining. I enjoyed the book, but have to say I questioned the sequencing of chapters and the huge holes the author left as she jumped around in time. Some eras seemed repetiti...more
Oct 18, 2009
Cinda
rated it
4 of 5 stars
Recommends it for:
anyone.
Recommended to Cinda by:
Laurel Kash
This is an amazing view of what the lives of children are like when a parent -- particularly a father -- is alchoholic. WHY did that mother choose to stay with such a man? Did she not care what was happening to her children? So many books written about the American South deal with alchoholism; this was an amazing book I would recommend to anyone seeking to understand the mindset of children from an abusive home.
I might have liked this book more had I not read it right after a very similar book. I was just bored of hearing the same story over again -- poor family, alcoholic dad, domestic violence, etc. Another annoying thing was her non-linear writing style. She had memories inside memories and I had a hard time keeping track of the timeline. I was probably more realistic than linear memoirs because whose memory is perfect, but it was still annoying. I was glad to be done with this book so I can move on...more
My neighborhood book club read this not long after we had read The Glass Castle. Comparisons were inevitable. By and large, we all found both of these memoirs to be sad, funny, moving and at times, quite painful to read, but we were all uplifted by the fact of the authors' success . . . not only survival, but her ability to rise above her circumstances. Definitely recommended.
this is a book that will make you laugh and cry, the thought that such horrible treatment of children that these 8 children went through breaks my heart. i stayed up after everyone else went to bed, and it makes me want to gather my little blessings into my arms and hold them, kiss them, and let them know how much o adore them. I highly recommend this book.
I enjoyed this novel so much that I read it twice. Ms. Moss writes from the heart, and does not mince words when it comes to her backgroud of family dysfunction. So many times I felt her pain, and had to stop, thinking of how blessed I am, growing up in my family.
I have also read Ms. Mosses other books as well. Great read!
I have also read Ms. Mosses other books as well. Great read!
This book was my "car" book for a year - kept it in the car and read it slowly over time. It's a sad story about growing up in such a poor family in the deep south, but I don't think it was the BEST one. It was touching in parts, but dragged in others. A lot of the small stories seemed to be told a few times over - same themes, etc. Living in the south, most of it did not impact me as strongly as it might have impacted others, so it may be worth a read, if you're interested in this type of story...more
Such a wonderfully told story of the authors life in the deep South with an abusive alcoholic father. Due to severe malnutrition the author's face is severely deformed. Yet there are moments of such beauty because of her wonderful mother. If only Moss had the same marketing team as "The Glass Castle." A much, much better memoir. Thanks to my friend Ellen for the recommendation.
This book takes you inside an alcoholic, abusive family and gives you a glimpse of the fear, anger, and silence an family encounters. The author is able to make you feel like you are part of the family, it makes you very uncomfortable.
It worth the time to read this book.
It worth the time to read this book.
Moss was from the town I lived in for 10 years. I was able to meet her and hear her speak a few times and appreciated her strength and resilience and sheer talent. Beautiful book. Somewhat typical of memoirs -- painful childhood touched by deep poverty, alcoholic father, etc.
I thought this book sucked. The abstract of it was intriguing, however the actual book was very boring. The book exuded 0 emotions or feelings. The characters in the book had no real personalities. Maybe I just could not relate to the memoir, but I did not enjoy this book.
Nov 23, 2009
Samantha
rated it
4 of 5 stars
Recommends it for:
People who love true stories of hardship
Recommended to Samantha by:
My mom
If you have read, "The Glass Castle" this is a book for you. Although I like the Glass Castle a hair more (hence the 4 stars and not 5) this book is a great collection of memoirs. Its a book to make your life look fabulous in contrast to this poor girls grim childhood.
This book left me saddened, stunned and amazed. I loved it. Having been raised in a poor rural community in the same decades as the author, I "knew of" kids and families like hers, went to school with them, and was very glad I was not one of them. This is a must read. Weeks after finishing this book,it haunts me and I find myself opening it up and reading pages and chapters at random and wondering how the author survived at all! I also wonder about her parents and what made them "tick". What hap...more
well. this was wonderful. i LOVED all the stories, despite the fact that the author lived a shitty life at times because of the aggression of her father and her mother's indifference.
i felt the book jumped around a lot so it was hard to follow the linear progression of the family, and the end felt very rushed and ended too abruptly. otherwise, i really enjoyed reading this.
i felt the book jumped around a lot so it was hard to follow the linear progression of the family, and the end felt very rushed and ended too abruptly. otherwise, i really enjoyed reading this.
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Jun 13, 2008 09:56am