I've read other reviews of this book as there are many at this point. One of the critiques I consistently hear is that she couldn't have remembered the details of her life at such a young age and that she exaggerated or made things up. I'm here to tell you, I can remember vividly almost everything that happened when I was age 4. I'm not sure about 3, because I didn't have anything traumatic happen then. I believe your memory kicks in when you have a trauma at a young age. I read this book because people who knew my family growing up insisted I read this. They kept saying, "Do it, your mother is in it!" They were right. My dad shared some similarities with Ms. Walls, but not the violence or drunkenness or sociability. Anyhow, as to embellishing her story, I doubt she did much of that. Her story rang SO true to my life experience, it was scary.