ELLEN FOSTER Paperback – 1 November 1997

Her mother dead, her father poor , drunk and abusive, her maternal grandma an embittered and mentally ill woman...the ten year old narrator tells of her journey from one home to another...the family she was placed with- and returned from - and her final successful placement with a local woman, from whom she eventually takes a new surname- "I heard they were the Foster family." And the (curiously unknowable) lifelong friend, Starletta - daughter of an impoverished but kindly coloured family, for whom Ellen notices her feelings changing, from the perspective of inculcated white superiority to a true valuation of the girl as an equal.She's a sparky, intelligent and self reliant child, and it tells a story, but not massively memorable.

Great book

A quick and quirky read. Was selected as a bookclub read but was a bit short for that purpose really. But I enjoyed Gibbons' style and her choice of subject matter which is grim, but lightened by narrators wry humour.

More ragged than I thought. I always recycle books to others so wasn't expecting perfect "used" condition but this was in a pretty battered condition.

terrible

While others reading Ellen Foster have given negative reviews because it was depressing, for me it was like a breath of fresh air! I am a 4th grade teacher working in a rural school where 80% of our children come for impoverished homes. I know real children who remind me of Ellen, but not all are as resilient. Ellen had a mind of her own and she used it to make a better life for herself. Her honesty and forthrightness came across rather crudely at times. However, it was because she had the ability to see the big picture and be honest with herself and others that she survived. This remarkable authenticity was in contrast to her cousin and aunt. Their pathetic, twisted lives hurt Ellen, even as they tried to sugar-coat their world! I could not put this book down. Too many children in America live in poverty. They need resources in order to make it out.