The Silver Star: A Novel

Written by Jeannette Walls

Narrated by Jeannette Walls

From the #1 New York Times bestselling author of The Glass Castle and Hang the Moon, Jeannette Walls’s gripping novel "transports us with her powerful storytelling...contemplates the extraordinary bravery needed to confront real-life demons in a world where the hardest thing to do may be to not run away" (O, The Oprah Magazine).

It is 1970 in a small town in California. “Bean” Holladay is twelve and her sister, Liz, is fifteen when their artistic mother, Charlotte, takes off to find herself, leaving her girls enough money to last a month or two. When Bean returns from school one day and sees a police car outside the house, she and Liz decide to take the bus to Virginia, where their widowed Uncle Tinsley lives in the decaying mansion that’s been in Charlotte’s family for generations.

An impetuous optimist, Bean soon discovers who her father was, and hears stories about why their mother left Virginia in the first place. Money is tight, and the sisters start babysitting and doing office work for Jerry Maddox, foreman of the mill in town, who bullies his workers, his tenants, his children, and his wife. Liz is whip-smart—an inventor of word games, reader of Edgar Allan Poe, nonconformist. But when school starts in the fall, it’s Bean who easily adjusts, and Liz who becomes increasingly withdrawn. And then something happens to Liz in the car with Maddox.

Jeannette Walls has written a deeply moving novel about triumph over adversity and about people who find a way to love each other and the world, despite its flaws and injustices.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Simon & Schuster Audio
• Release date: Jun 11, 2013
• ISBN: 9781442362864

Jeannette Walls

Jeannette Walls graduated from Barnard College and was a journalist in New York. Her memoir, The Glass Castle, has been a New York Times bestseller for more than eight years. She is also the author of the instant New York Times bestsellers The Silver Star and Half Broke Horses, which was named one of the ten best books of 2009 by the editors of The New York Times Book Review. Walls lives in rural Virginia with her husband, the writer John Taylor.

Reviews for The Silver Star

[Peggy Rose Smith · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

The resilience of love between sisters. Great book to listen to

[Marianne · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

So far, every book by Jeannette Walls is great, including this one. I wonder if it’s similar to her other books because she used scenes from her real life with a twist from her imagination.

I plan on reading all her books and getting all in printed form.

This book had a lot of humor, but also had serious subjects and situations.

Worth reading or listening to. I listened to the audio version, read by the author.

[Paula Harvey · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

This is an amazing book. Very on point. Very good description. Very real and true.
Love it!

[shannonrose4 · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

Love the author, love her writing. I really enjoyed this work of fiction, but I loved Half-Broke-Horses better.

[ncruse37 · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

Sweet, endearing, I need a second book so I can know more about the girls!

[lindsay_w_2 · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

As parents, we are supposed to give our children roots and wings. The mother in this story takes the wings for herself, and leaves her two daughters to establish roots on their own. There are certainly familiar characters and themes from Walls’ Glass Castle memoir, likely because she used her own life experiences for inspiration in this work of fiction. The difference for me though, was that the tone of The Silver Star felt much more hopeful than The Glass Castle. The emu’s homecoming at the end of the book beautifully exemplified a number of the themes in the story; the importance of having roots and a sense of place; the challenge of taming and caring for something without holding on to it; and the liberating effect of knowing when it is time to give up the fight, heal, and move on with your life.

[glade1 · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

Jeannette Walls's memoir, The Glass Castle, is one of my favorite books from recent years. She tells of a dysfunctional and often harrowing childhood with humor and love, and the author and her siblings have my respect.This novel, The Silver Star, contains many elements of the true Walls story: resourceful children must stick together and fight the often cruel world alone due to unstable parenting and the inconsistency of adults. There is both humor and meanness throughout the story, and, this being a novel instead of real life, the author is able to craft a neater resolution for the Holladay sisters than for her own siblings.I highly recommend this novel. Walls is a great storyteller and Bean Holladay is an admirable heroine!

[jenn88-1 · Rating: 3 out of 5 stars]

If you've read the author's memoir, then you've read a much better version of this book. It tells a predictable story of two girls who are left on their own after their nut of a mother picks up and leaves.

[tfs93 · Rating: 3 out of 5 stars]

This was not as good as Half Broke Horses, but worth a read none the less. Bean is such an interesting character. You will be amazed at her bravery and maturity, for the ripe old age of 12. I wasn't impressed with the ending, and I would have liked to know more about Uncle Tinsley and the girls mother. I would certainly read the next book by Walls, but this is not as good as her previous efforts.

[angelalam-300700 · Rating: 3 out of 5 stars]

A solid book, but short of the spectacular Glass Castle.

[dara85 · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

Having read the Glass Castle, after reading this I understood better why her mother was the way she was. In the Glass Castle she was selfish and self-centered. I had more empathy for the mother after reading this book.

[schatje_1 · Rating: 3 out of 5 stars]

Having loved Walls’ memoir, The Glass Castle, I looked forward to reading her most recent novel. Unfortunately, her work of fiction is not of the same quality.It is 1970. Two sisters, Liz, 15, and Jean, 12, are abandoned by their mother so they leave their home in California and take a bus to Byler, Virginia, to visit their Uncle Tinsley, their mother’s brother, who still lives in the ancestral home. The girls end up staying and taking part-time jobs working for Jerry Maddox, a foreman for the town’s major employer, who has no qualms about using his position to get people to do what he wants.Jean, known as Bean, is the narrator. Is the name a derivation of the author’s name and is the relationship between Liz and Jean just a reworking of the Lori and Jeannette relationship described in The Glass Castle? Therein lies a problem I have with the novel: there are so many parallels between the memoir and the novel. Bean is like Jeannette in her adventurous spirit; Liz is like Lori, Jeanette’s bookish older sister. Charlotte, Liz and Bean’s mother, is a free spirit like Rose Mary Walls. Both Bean and Jeannette come to feel differently about their parents and the bohemian lifestyle imposed by them. Both books show girls surviving and thriving despite the adults around them.The book is also derivative in that Bean is like an older version of Jean Louise (Scout) Finch in To Kill a Mockingbird. She is precocious and feisty and because of a court case learns about the unfairness of the world and the meaning of courage. Jerry Maddox, the novel’s villain, resembles Bob Ewell in Harper Lee’s novel: he does not hesitate to intimidate children. Aunt Al is the Calpurnia figure who serves as a surrogate mother.Another issue with the book is the stereotypical characterization. Jerry Maddox, the villain, has no redeeming qualities. The book jacket describes him well: “a big man who bullies his workers, his tenants, his children, and his wife.” Everyone fears him because of his power in the small town. School officials are portrayed as clueless. For example, Miss Clay, a vice principal, chastises Bean for being unladylike (shades of Scout again) and even says, “’School officials never get to the bottom of these quarrels, and in my mind, we shouldn’t try’” (190). Aunt Al is too good to be believable: “Aunt Al also had it really tough . . . but she never complained. Instead, she was always talking about how blessed she was” (115).There are symbols in the novel, but they lack subtlety. That the Silver Star is a symbol of courage is obvious so when Bean tries to give her father’s medal to a person, she is clearly recognizing that person’s bravary. The emus on a neighbour’s farm are symbols of outsiders. Liz especially identifies with them, describing them as “special” because they are “beautifully weird” (94) and even says, “She felt that she was sort of like an emu herself” (241).I can see this book being used, like To Kill a Mockingbird, in junior classes in high school. It has a spunky narrator young adult readers will identify with as she struggles to find her place in a world which has not provided her with much stability. Like Bean, adolescents ask questions such as, “Was there such a thing as completely right and completely wrong” (86). The themes are developed clearly using symbols that students will be able to identify fairly easily. It is not a demanding read and begs comparison to Lee’s novel which virtually all students encounter in their literature classes

[romonko · Rating: 3 out of 5 stars]

This is another coming-of-age book and I did hold high hopes for it. It fell short somehow. Maybe becaue this type of book has been done so well before, and this one just fell short. I am a huge fan of Martha Grimes' Emma Graham series and wish there were more books about darling Emma. I also love the Flavia de Luce series by Alan Bradley. There are lots of others in this genre that are memorable. But in this noteworthy group, I'm sorry, Ms. Walls just didn't quite measure up. With the exception of wonderful, precocious twelve-year-old Bean (Jean) Holladay and her eccentric Uncle Tinsely, I found that the rest of the characters were flat and and typecast. Bean's 15 year old sister Liz shows some promise, but she kind of disappears about 1/4 of the way through the book. And Bean's mom Charlotte, well the less said about this flighty superficial character, the better. The book is set in Virginia in the spring and summer of 1970. Liz and Bean have found their way to their Mom's family home in Virgina after their gaddabout mother has left them alone in their home in California for weeks. There they meet their mother's brother Uncle Tinsley who sees the girls' plight and takes them in while they wait for their mother to make a reappearance. The story is about Liz and Bean's efforts to make a home for themselves with a kindly uncle. They take jobs with a local bigwig and a whole series of occurences arise from this that forever changes the two girls. This book is OK, but I just didn't find that it really went anywhere, and I didnt' care enough about the characters, with the exception of Bean, to really want to read what happened to them.

[baystatera · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

Writing a novel rather than a memoir, the author has more freedom to embellish, change events around, and add an entire plot line to build the story on. But knowing the author’s background from The Glass Castle, I felt like I was constantly filling in blanks when imagining the characters of Bean, Liz, and Charlotte. It’s hard for me to decide how successfully the author has made the transition to novelist because of that. I don’t know how well this novel would have done if it had been published first, as a work of fiction. I highly recommend the audiobook edition. I think the author’s narration helped a lot to sell me on the story and the characters as seen through the eyes of Bean.The Silver Star will be a good choice for many book clubs because of its themes of family dysfunction, coming of age, and socioeconomic inequality. Also because (despite the disappointing failings of many of the main characters) there is a clear villain of the story (Jerry Maddox, evil mill foreman) and a true heroine (Bean herself.)

[mchwest · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

This is a great write… and a great read. Troubled families and how to grow up on the other side of the fence. It ended on an odd note, but somehow I expected this from the author. I have always enjoyed her family sagas.

[bakersfieldbarbara · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

Bean, age 12, and Liz, age 15 are left as their 'artistic' mom, Charlotte goes off to "find" herself." the girls eventually end up with her brother, their Uncle Tinsley, in Virginia. Because Mom did not return at once, the girls enrolled in school and did odd jobs to earn some spending money. Working for Jerry Maddox, the foreman of the local mill, was something their Uncle would have forbidden, so, as, they worked , Maddox supposedly banked their money for them for later use. When asking for the money, Maddox would not give it to them. Bean makes friends easily, but Liz gets more and more despondent, skipping school and staying in her room. Eventually, besides being crook, Maddox shows his abusive side and charges are filed. Not to divulge the ending, this is a page turner and a sad commentary on adult power. Jeanette Walls, the author,, writes with authority and the reader will want to know how the girls survive the injustices life gave them. I had not read any of Ms Walls books, but will order "the Glass Castle" along with an order for The Silver Star as a gift. A wonderful compelling book for an insight into how children survive when someone believes in them.

[holloar-1 · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

I liked this book, but not as much as her first two. I would recommend it though.

[jo3jo_1 · Rating: 3 out of 5 stars]

This is not my first experience with Walls' work, as I read both The Glass Castle and Half-Broke Horses and loved both of these non-fiction works. I wasn't sure how her fictional story would go with me, but I had positive thoughts knowing that Walls narrated the story herself. Any previous books I listened to narrated by the author I just loved! Unfortunately, this wasn't the case with The Silver Star.If you have read Walls previous books it is obvious she comes from a highly dysfunctional family. She draws on her personal experiences once again to create Bean and Liz's story. Although Bean is our main character, I felt the story belonged as much to Liz as she is the one who faces the crisis head on. Liz and Bean live with their single mother in California, never in one place too long. It isn't uncommon for their mother to not show up at home for long periods of time, but this time the girls are worried. Since the girls don't have jobs, they can't pay bills or buy food so they have to come up with a plan for survival. Recalling that their mother comes from Virginia and still has family there, they decide to embark on a journey across the country to stay with their family until their mother gets her life in order. So they leave a note for their mother, hoping she finds it when she returns, scrape enough money together to purchase two one-way tickets to Virginia.The girls are surprised upon meeting their family in Virginia, to learn that her mother comes from a seemingly wealthy heritage. Since all that is left of the family fortune seems to be the original Holladay home, the girls decide to take jobs to help pay for their school clothes and personal expenses. Against their Uncle Tinsley's wishes, they gain employment with long-time family nemesis, Jerry Maddox. This decision sets a whole new set of events in motion.I did enjoy Liz and Bean's story of perseverance. They didn't have a family life until they took control of the situation and moved to Virginia. This finally gave them the opportunity to be part of a family that takes care of each other. This novel could be an instance where I may have enjoyed it more had I actually read it rather than listening to it. I just feel that Walls could have put more emotion and passion into her narration, I mean she created the characters! With themes of family, secrets, and perseverance, you may enjoy this story more than I did. Although I didn't love listening to the book I feel that it would make an interesting book club selection.

[superhelen-1 · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

I thought The Silver Star was absolutely superb. I would recommend the book to anyone who can handle a bipolar mother abandoning her children whenever she feels like it. The book made me think about how much more I should appreciate my mother and all she does for me.

[eenerd · Rating: 3 out of 5 stars]

Engrossing and one heck of a page turner, I read this in one night. A fairly simple story of two sisters making their way in the world, but nicely wrought. I'd like to give it another half a star at least.

[nwieme-1 · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

Started reading and thought... same old same old for Jeanette, but this one is fiction and her characters are terrific! Quick read- worth it!

[Dawn Shull · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

Second time through and still a great coming of age story. Please write and tell more stories ms walls.

[thelostentwife · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

Jeannette Walls is, for me, one of those authors who writes such quiet, powerful stories that I always have to mentally steel myself by before picking up her newest books. It was no different with The Silver Star. I thought I was prepared, I really did, but then... as Walls has done in her previous books, I was completely undone by Liz and Bean's story.From the beginning I was hooked, the story of Liz and Bean and the neglect of their mother and those frozen pot pies - I could taste them as they were eaten time and time again. Each twist and turn that lead to the movement of the girls to their uncle's house and the unfolding story there had me completely hooked.There are times when I pick up a book described like this one and wonder what I'll be getting. I knew from past experience that Walls wouldn't disappoint, but what I didn't know was that this book would stick with me long after I finished reading it. It's been over two weeks and still I remember and think about certain details and twists that were in the story and I consider them for what lessons they can teach me about my own life. I highly recommend this read if you are in the mood for a pensive, melancholy story.

[mfdavis-1 · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

I enjoyed this a lot. Jeannette Walls really knows how to write the dysfunctional family!

[john_warner-1 · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

This book is a tale about two sisters finding sanctuary in the ancestral home of their mother, a woman probably carrying a diagnosis of bipolar disorder, who frequently abandons her two children for days at a time in her effort to seek fame and fortune as a singer and songwriter. The themes explored include family relationships, especially those between sisters, abandonment, financial struggle, and coming-of-age issues. The narrator is Bean, the younger siblings, whose character reminds me of Scout Finch of To Kill a Mockingbird and the nurturing and protective power of family reminded me of the Boatwright sisters in The Secret Life of Bees. If you read and enjoyed either of these books, you would enjoy The Silver Star like I did.

[akrae-1 · Rating: 3 out of 5 stars]

This book is very similar to her previous books, but it's different enough and very engaging. You fall in love with the characters! I recommend!

[bearette24 · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

I really enjoyed this book. It was about 2 sisters with an unreliable mother. They end up in 1970s rural Virginia. It was an interesting portrayal of a part of the country I am not very familiar with. The characters of the sisters were very compelling. It also had faint echoes of To Kill a Mockingbird.

[cindyb29 · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

Bean and Liz Holladay are two sisters living in California with their unmarried mother, Charlotte, who has a habit of disappearing for days at a time. When she doesn't return after several weeks from her latest disappearance, Bean comes home from school to find a police car in front of her house. She and her sister decide to go to their mom's hometown, Byler, Virginia, to stay with their Uncle Tinsley, lest they end up in foster homes, leaving a coded message for their mom as to where they are. While there, Bean finds out who her father is and discovers that she has an aunt and uncle and cousins. When Charlotte finally returns and sees the note, she returns to her hometown, but refuses to stay, instead planning to taking the girls with her on a road trip. On the way, she has a mental breakdown and the girls are returned to their uncle. In order not to feel like a burden to him, they seek out jobs, and end up working for the manager of the cotton mill which the Holladay family used to own. Trouble ensues, and Bean takes the initiative to stand up for her family. This is in keeping withf Walls' dysfunctional family memoirs. I enjoyed it and found it to be a hard book to put down.

[ennie_2 · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

In her memoir The Glass Castle, Walls describes her harrowing childhood of poverty and parental neglect. In this novel, physical conditions for teens Liz and Bean are a little better, but their mother is somewhat flighty and their fathers deceased. When Mom takes a break from her responsibilities, the girls find their way to their uncle back east. Life in the mill town formerly run by the family has its ups and downs, and heroes and villains. The plot moves at a leisurely pace, but I was never bored and would love to meet these characters again.

[khiemstra631 · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

Author of The Glass House, Jeannette Wells here reprises that tale in a fictional setting. This time around she gives us two daughters and their flighty, somewhat crazy mother. The mother basically abandons the girls in a small California town while she goes off to pursue a career as a musician. After the towns people start getting suspicious, the girls take their remaining money and buy two bus tickets to the small Virginia town of Byler where their uncle Tinsley lives in the falling-down ancestral home that belonged to their mother's parents. After a rocky start when he makes them sleep in a barn, they pretty much take to each other and start building new lives. Money is tight, and the girls look for work. The sleazy Mr. Maddox hires them, and the reader pretty well knows that trouble is on the way. The younger girl, Bean, is a great lead character and makes the story a joy to read. I thoroughly enjoyed the book and look forward to more works from Wells.