'A memoir to stand alongside classics by the likes of Jeanette Winterson and Lorna Sage . . . a compelling and ultimately joyous account of self-determination'
- Sunday Times
'A fascinating, jaw-dropping memoir'
- Nina Stibbe, Observer
'[A] superb memoir… Westover’s journey from a remote corner of the American west to one of the world’s grandest seats of learning is extraordinary . . . Her story, of fighting to be herself, is as old as the hills she came from, but Westover gives us such a fresh, absorbing take that it deserves to bring her own private Idaho into the bestseller lists, book groups and, eventually, cinemas.'
- The Times
'Heartbreaking in its honesty...[an] intelligent and powerful memoir'
- Literary Review
'An amazing story, and truly inspiring. The kind of book everyone will enjoy. IT’S EVEN BETTER THAN YOU’VE HEARD.'
- Bill Gates
'Brilliantly recounts her journey towards knowledge and enlightenment'
- Blake Morrison, Guardian
'Her story is remarkable, as each extreme anecdote described in tidy prose attests. That someone who grew up in her circumstances could achieve as much as she has is astonishing . . . The central tension she wrestles with throughout her book is how to be true to herself without alienating her family. Her upbringing was extraordinary, but that struggle is not.'
- The Economist
'This memoir [is] one of the wisest accounts of family love and betrayal that I’ve read'
- Mail on Sunday'
'[An] astonishing autobiography'
- Antony Beevor