Gal: A True Life

Rating:
Summary: A Must Read!
Review: I read this book when I was 17 years old, since then I've book looking for a copy to have of my own. This is truly a unforgettable book. Ruthie had such a hard life. My heart went out to her. I wish she had wrote more on her life in future books, I would like to know how she's doing now. I recommend this book for everyone who thought that they had a hard life. Fatima

Rating:
Summary: OUTSSTANDING!
Review: I really enjoying reading this book. It help me to undersatnd my self. I think every one have experience like gal in their home. I do hope you write another book real soon. A great job well done 100% thanks for sharing your experience with the world.

Rating:
Summary: "Ruthie Bolton" is a warrior
Review: I simply loved this book. I have the hardcover version and have read it over the years when I needed inspiration. Ruthie is born to a teenaged mother who is beaten so badly she finally runs away from home leaving Ruthie in the brutal hands of her step-grandfather. Her grandmother is killed before her eyes at his hands when Ruthie is very young. Ruthie and her aunts are raised almost as sisters and come to fear him as they should. That Ruthie survived at all is amazing. The fact that she came out of her childhood to adulthood without being bitter is amazing. Ruthies first marriage when she is a teenager results in her daughter Mary who she has taken away from her by her husband's family. Ruthie finally meets Ray who loves her unconditionally. Ruthie goes to Florida and meets his large family who also love her. Once she accepts their love she is able to come to terms with her past. Since she would only be about 40 years old now, I would love to see more of her story.

Rating:
Summary: "Ruthie Bolton" is a warrior
Review: I simply loved this book. I have the hardcover version and have read it over the years when I needed inspiration. Ruthie is born to a teenaged mother who is beaten so badly she finally runs away from home leaving Ruthie in the brutal hands of her step-grandfather. Her grandmother is killed before her eyes at his hands when Ruthie is very young. Ruthie and her aunts are raised almost as sisters and come to fear him as they should. That Ruthie survived at all is amazing. The fact that she came out of her childhood to adulthood without being bitter is amazing. Ruthies first marriage when she is a teenager results in her daughter Mary who she has taken away from her by her husband's family. Ruthie finally meets Ray who loves her unconditionally. Ruthie goes to Florida and meets his large family who also love her. Once she accepts their love she is able to come to terms with her past. Since she would only be about 40 years old now, I would love to see more of her story.

Rating:
Summary: A toughie, but a goodie
Review: I truly enjoyed this book! I am a college student, and I hardly EVER get a time to do some recreational reading, and so when I went into a women and cheldren's bookstore, I glanced the shelves, and grabbed a book with the simplest title, "Gal". I cracked it open, and literally read it nonstop in one day. It was truly remarkably how Mrs. Bolton remembered all the events in her life, and was able to put it on paper with such frankness and honest detail. I mean, to speak of these events, up until the day she writes the book--remembering her estranged mother, relationships with relatives and men, and just riding that mental roller coaster of good times and bad times--shows courage, strength, and hope. She brought us through the times and the eras, through the changes and mindsets of life, especially in the South. All through the viewpoint of one woman. I also like the way the author seemd like an aunt or a neighbor, telling a story...not trying to use big words, not paying attention to grammar, but writing it in her style, the way she know how to get it on paper. This added flavor and personalization in a way that autobiographies rarely do. She told it like it was. Not sugar coated--when it hurt, it hurt, when she messed up, we felt her sadness, when she succeeded, we felt her joy. She was "Ruthie". And now we all know a piece of "Ruthie"...or if you prefer, "Gal". I bought this book brand-spanking new in October, and since then, I have passed this on to my mother, sister, and EVERY female friend I have. Now, it's all dog-eared and ragged, and I STILL highly recommend this for every woman pre-teen to adult, to read this and truly grasp the messages and the expereince within. I guess that's my two cents. Feel free to comment. ;)

Rating:
Summary: ruthie bolton stories are captavating, funny and I cried
Review: I WENT TO HIGH SCHOOL WITH RUTHIE . THE BOOK IS A BREATHE OF FRESH AIR. IT LEFT ME THINKING ABOUT THE EVERY DAY LIFE WE ALL HAVE TO BATTLE IN OUR LIFE TIME. MY SISTER AND I LAUGHED AND CRIED BECAUSE WE HAVE A GENERAL IDEA OF WHO SHE WAS TALKING ABOUT. BEING FROM A SMALL TOWN LIKE OURS EVERYBODY KNOWS YOUR BUSINESS. SHE IS AN EXCELLANT WRITER AND I HOPE SHE COMES OUT WITH ANOTHER ONE SOON. RUTHIE I AWAIT YOUR NEXT ARRIVAL.MAY GOD BLESS YOU ON YOUR ENDEAVORS.

Rating:
Summary: Maybe extinction isn't such a bad thing...
Review: Ignorance, brutality, indifference, self-destruction--I found this book to be an unrelenting, disjointed catalog of the terrible things people can do to themselves and each other. The narrative is unrelieved by any positive lessons learned. Motivation for any action seems to be the immediate gratification of any need or the avoidance of pain caused by others or the rigid conformation to a social structure that demands subjugation of the weak. "Gal's" observations about herself and others show little empathy, insight or learning. To be fair, none of it is glorified, but told instead in a very matter-of-fact tone devoid of analysis or judgement. As an oral history detailing the multi-generational consequences of poverty and ignorance, this book succeeds. As a tale of redemption, it woefully fails and made me despair for my species.

Rating:
Summary: Very Very Sad
Review: My Aunt (god rest) recommended this book to me and after i finished it, i was so emotionally drained. I have never read a book that touched me like this one did. I just couldnt believe that this was a true story. I wanted to get out a pen a paper and write to her, and tell her she has a friend.

Rating:
Summary: Outstanding, riveting.
Review: Once you start reading this book you will not be able to put it down until you've finished the last word. A true-life story of pain and victory. I know her Ruthie personally.

Rating:
Summary: Heartbreaking...
Review: Ruthie Bolton (which is a psuedonym), or Gal as she is called, and her family experienced things that no one, especially young children, should ever experience in life. She was abandoned early in life by her teenage mother and later grew up being humiliated by others. She also suffers horrendous abuse at the hands of her grandfather, the same man who savagely beat and killed her grandmother. In an attempt to escape the harsh realities of her life, Ruthie develops some very bad habits, and makes several bad choices, one of which includes getting married at a very young age (for the wrong reasons), which ultimately ends in divorce.

Even though her past is horrific, she does not allow the ugliness that was her life determine her future. When she meets the man that will eventually become her second husband, Ruthie's life begins to change for the better. With the love and support of her second husband and his family, Ruthie begins to flourish. She goes on to become a wife, mother and career person, titles she never thought she would hold.

GAL: A TRUE LIFE was an absolutely riveting book. The emotions were so real I could feel them, as if I had actually lived Gal's life. I commend the author for having the fortitude and the desire to share her painful childhood with the world. I do understand the author's desire for anonymity, but I would love to meet and hug the woman behind the psuedonym Ruthie Bolton. She is the epitome of a true survivor.

Reviewed by Renee Williams
of The RAWSISTAZ Reviewers