The Challenge Factory discussion

LittleRedRidingHood & Ezi - Educated

Checking in

Hi, sorry I'm late, I had some internet connection problems. I get the audiobook on Saturday or Monday. I don't know what format of the book you have, so I checked the sample of the book for content page and this is it:

Part one (chapter 1 - chapter 16)
Part two (chapter 17 - chapter 29)
Part three (chapter 30 - chapter 40)

I like to check in now and then. Its always interesting how your thought process was while reading.

Got the book 👌 I can start whenever you want.

Can we aim for Tuesday next week?

Yes, sure.

It's Tuesday News Day and I am ready

Why did the dad and grandma clash so much? I’m surprised he only has 1 wife

War against dairy huh?

If her dad was possibly Bipolar, what about the mom? She spouted off similar philosophies

Things that stood out that as i listened at the Doctors Offic today:

🔹Father tells Luke to drive with a burning leg and goes to bear the flames of the brush fires. That’s truly crazy

🔹11 yr old Tara going to ballet wearing jeans, boots But couldn’t wear ballet clothes since it’s not modest. She seemed to like it but the dad ultimately preferred plays which she excelled at.

🔹herbalists and herbal remedies are things I bleivr ib. But acuring a Sorethroat by opening your mouth for 30 minutes sounds painful

🔹Grandma cancer was an interesting view of her belief for conventional medicine and her son’s belief Herbs which works by Faith. He said the herbs only worked if you believed so maybe the power was in one’s mind.

🔹Father driving straight into a storm and his response was that “I’m not driving faster than angels can fly”...I’m shocked he didn’t kill his whole family. His faith is both reckless and a tad inspiring.

🔹Sean isnt crazy. He’s a sadist. That poor girl Sadie was treating him like a king and he was gaslighting her. I’m surprised he didn’t hurt animals because he loved hurting people physically and mentally.
The dad didn’t go out to hurt people but Sean is definitely sadistic.

IM currently on Chapter 78: she got into BYU and has a boyfriend. Though she doesn’t really understand relationships like Charles wanted.

I'm such a horrible buddyreader😥

I couldn't juggle two audiobooks at the same time, so I put down Educated and finished the other that I was furter in, then went to relisten the part I already read so I'm miles behind you. I'm going to pack 2 more hours today and then share some observations. You made some fine points.

LittleRedRidingHood wrote: "I'm such a horrible buddyreader😥

I couldn't juggle two audiobooks at the same time, so I put down Educated and finished the other that I was furter in, then went to relisten the part I already rea..."

Take your time. This book wasn’t a breeze as I was waiting for some climatic moment. I didn’t get it. It was a marathon and I was exhausted at the end

Is forth time a lukcy charm? I tried to post my thoughts three times before, but I lost everything. I think is just the case of weak signal and the best way is to write it in word doc and then copy paste on goodreads, so nothing is lost.

First time around I didn't notice that they are indeed mormons. I just thought that they are one of those really zealous people who get ready for the doomsday or some kind of cult. I really missed some things upon the first reading. 😕

Now I have to say I have a real dislike for people who use bible or any religious script for that matter, and distort the meaning of it to fit their purpose. There were countless times, when the head of this family misused it to manipulate, intimidate, force his will, punish or mistreat the people who were closest to him. And in this mess, grandma, fathers mother was the only one with same sense. I think that they came to blows precisely because of that, she didnt buy his delusions or share his radical beliefs. She was a religious woman but at the same time a woman of common sense, who knows when to draw a line. And there were several times in the book, when I kept asking myself where was grandma, she could help Tara or other siblings. I guess she was elswhere. It was mentioned that she moved with her husband, I don't know if only for the winter or permanently, because she did pop up time to time.

War aginst dairy? Well, it did sound a lot like that. Maybe he did it because of his cousin to show him, he didn't like him. If I'm not mistaken cousin worked at the dairy farm or something. And dad had often this air of superioritiy about himself. Althoug milk on self sustained farm is quite important thing to have. Funny thing, later on dad bild a milk farm of sorts. So dairy conveniently was no longer banned. 😉

At the begining I didn't found mother problematic. She seemed a submissive wife in a patriarhal home, as usually is with mormons. She didn't directly oppose or contradict her husband, but she occasionally expressed disagreement behind his back. Not because she lacked spine, but more so because she was a pleaser, as mentioned in discription of her childhood. I think she was so subdued because she lived a life of a housewife with none of her money, she was depended on her husband, under his thumb. When she started practising midwifery and herbal medicine she gained some confidence and income and with that some foothing and respect at home. Later on, when all that drama with Sean started to surface, I lost all of respect for her. That she would put an abuser before the victim is beyond me. Trying to manipulate Tara, just as father did with all of his children. My only explanation for her shift in behaviour is relization that her husband took over her business that set her free and she fell back to that old submissive position, comfortable place for her, when others make dicisions for her and she just follows.

And just some thoughts:

Do you think that the upbringing defines adulthood?

What do you think caused such a shift in fathers behaviour? He had an abusive father himself, but later on when he was working a normal job and he meet his future wife, he didn't seem as radical.

I don't know much about bipolar apart from symptoms, so I'm not sure if it is possible to have it from childhood or if it manifests later on in life. Since I doubt he would be willing to get diagnosed, we will never find out. But if he is, is then Sean too?

I have more notes that I'm going to post them later.

The thing is that the parents really really believe in what they are saying. While I may not agree, they practice what they preach and walk the walk. That’s true faith and belief.
There has always been religious fanatics and they are a danger to themselves and others. They are also wholly judgmental and suspicious of “nonbelievers”.