Pursuing College to Learn Singing
Westover says she originally had no concept of formal education and only pursued going to college because she was passionate about learning to sing, viewing subjects like algebra as simple obstacles to that goal.
Tara Westover
American
Born 1986
Tara Westover is an American memoirist, essayist and historian. Her memoir Educated (2018) debuted at No. 1 on The New York Times bestseller list and was a finalist for a number of national awards, including the Los Angeles Times Book Prize, PEN America's Jean Stein Book Award, and two awards from the National Book Critics Circle Award. The New York Times ranked Educated as one of the 10 Best Books of 2018. Westover was chosen by Time as one of the 100 most influential people of 2019.
On LuvemBooks, we've reviewed Educated.
1
Books ReviewedIn Tara Westover's own words
Bill Gates interviews Tara Westover about her memoir 'Educated', tracing her journey from having no formal schooling to attending Cambridge.
Uploaded by Bill Gates, 2019 · Watch on YouTube ·
Also in conversation
Educational Divides Fueling Hostility
Westover observes that cultural divisions are increasingly forming along educational lines, creating deep hostility between degree holders and non-degree holders who view each other in bad faith.
Education as Self-Discovery Versus Division
Westover views education as a process of self-discovery, but cautions that demographic self-segregation in schools risks turning them into instruments of division rather than connection.
Bridging Cultural Divides Through Stories
Westover says her goal is to tell stories that make rural places like Idaho understandable and accessible to urban areas like New York, where such lifestyles feel entirely foreign.
Tara Westover books in order
2 books; 1 reviewed on LuvemBooks. Dates and covers from Amazon.
2018Our review →
2027Brothers and SistersComing soonAmazon ↗
Ask LuvemBooks about Tara Westover
Tara Westover is an American memoirist and historian, and we've reviewed 1 of her books on LuvemBooks. That book, Educated: A Memoir, recounts her real-life path from an unschooled childhood with survivalist Mormon parents on Buck's Peak, Idaho to a PhD in history from the University of Cambridge — a memoir built entirely on her own experience rather than invention. Readers on Amazon have rated it 4.5 out of 5 (43 ratings), and it's currently seeing a resurgence in interest.
- Where should I start?
- Start with Educated: A Memoir — it's the Tara Westover book we've reviewed, and it's their best-known work. The story moves from an isolated, unschooled childhood in Idaho all the way to a Cambridge PhD, and readers on Amazon rate it 4.5/5 (43 ratings).
- What's their writing style?
- Based on the one book we've reviewed, Tara Westover writes first-person memoir rooted in their own life. Educated: A Memoir is structured as a personal journey, moving from an unschooled childhood under survivalist Mormon parents in Idaho to academic life at Cambridge. As a trained historian, Westover brings a scholar's perspective to their own past.
- Books we've reviewed
- We've reviewed 1 book by Tara Westover. Educated: A Memoir is their account of growing up unschooled in a survivalist Mormon family on Buck's Peak, Idaho, and going on to earn a PhD in history from the University of Cambridge — readers on Amazon rate it 4.5/5 (43 ratings).
- What genre do they write?
- Tara Westover writes memoir. The book we've reviewed, Educated: A Memoir, is a nonfiction account of their own life — an unschooled childhood with survivalist Mormon parents in Idaho, followed by formal education culminating in a PhD in history from the University of Cambridge.
Who is Tara Westover?
Where should I start?
What's their writing style?
Books we've reviewed
What genre do they write?
Who is Tara Westover?
Tara Westover is an American memoirist, essayist and historian. They are best known for Educated: A Memoir, which tells the story of growing up without formal schooling in a survivalist Mormon family in Idaho and eventually earning a PhD in history from the University of Cambridge. Their work has also been published in Hebrew under the title משכילה.
Follow up
What is Educated about?
Is Educated a true story?
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