Good read

Nice to see a favorite show from the perspective of a child actor in it, as well as the rest of Mary's story! ( )

When I was a child our family often gathered to watch Hee Haw and The Waltons together. I've been watching The Waltons with a couple of our kids recently, thanks to Netflix.

As for books, I love memoirs and autobiographies. After reading Confessions of a Prairie Bitch by Alison Arngrim, Mary McDonough's book Lessons from the Mountain came to my attention.

The book happens to have reached me on two very different levels. The first, of course, has to do with the part of her life during which she played Erin Walton. The second has to do with her fight against Lupus. One of our children is fighting a neurological disorder, and is struggling with some additional issues also. I was fascinated by both parts of the book.

The Waltons' cast seems to have been a rare one that really got along as if they were family and loved each other. Mary grew up on the show. Fortunately, she avoided many of the typical pitfalls that many actors succumb to.

I'm glad I read her book. I'm also glad to be watching the show again. We are in season three of nine. ( )

lessons from the mountain by mary mcdonough , tales of background scenes while filming
different episodes of waltons mountain. all the things i learned, wow just in time for my
trip south to visit the waltons museum in a few weeks. ( )

This book was great! I'm a long time Walton's fan and loved reading about Mary's experiences then and now. ( )

I picked this up from the library because I loved The Waltons as a kid (and still am delighted to catch reruns on TV, especially of the early episodes), and I thought this would probably be a pleasant, quick read. It's really a lot more than just a reminiscence about McDonough's time on the show, though the first half or so of the book does contain a fair number of anecdotes about cast members and memories from a childhood on a TV set. The book is more of a portrait of McDonough, her struggles with self-worth and self-image, and her growth into an activist for several medical issues. The narration is warm and welcoming, and the telling always feels like it is done to give voice to something rather than to roll around in personal drama. (And, refreshingly, there's no gossip or tale-telling here). Worth a read, both as a book about The Waltons and as an inspiring tale of a troubled person who found a path to acceptance and peace. ( )

I particularly liked all the stories of the Waltons' actors and behind-the-scenes stuff. Mary McDonough tells her life with honesty and candor, not to shock us or make her feel sorry for her, but to share the lessons she has learned from her life in hope it will help others who have similar problems, mostly coming from her need to feel like she belonged. ( )