“When I was little I would think of ways to kill my daddy.” That's quite an opening line!

I chose this book because I was wanting to read classic-American-literature and was also hovering around award-winners. This novella is both.

Ellen has survived a childhood filled with abuse and neglect, yet her spirit never fails. She has a results-oriented, get-it-done attitude which causes her to hatch a plan... she's going to find herself a new family.

There are so many beautiful moments within this story, made all the more beautiful when contrasted against the difficult ones. It was interesting to learn why Ellen had given herself the last name of Foster. Her 11-year-old mind did not yet understand that a "foster family" was not a family with the last name of Foster.

I would have never chosen this book- but the libray had "blind date with a book" week. A bunch of books wapped up, you pick one, check it out, and unwrap your blind date book. So, I chose the smallest book I could find.

I liked it, and i would recommend it to friends. I actually think this WOULD make a good book club read, there were alot of issues going on here that didn't have closure- so I think a good discussion could be had.

Negatives:
The narrator, who was supposed to be an 11 year old girl, sounded like both an adult and an 11 yr old girl. Not totally believable to me. At times she was a little too emotionally mature in her thoughts.

Positives:
She was a smart girl and grew up fast. She learned how to care for herself and spent alot of time alone. So, I COULD imagine her having all these conversations in her head, trying to figure things out since she has no real guidance in her life.
I liked tying to figure out a few things as I was reading-Is she black or white? Around what year is this? You figure these out rather quickly, (it is only 145 pages) but I still had to figure them out!

It is hard not to fall in love with 11 year old Ellen Foster as she narrates her struggles thru her young life of abuse and repeated disappointments in search of a safe home and someone to love her. She is so brave and bright and mature for her age, and will make you laugh in spite of it all. Great book!

La historia que narra Ellen Foster, una niña de once años, tiene reminiscencias autobiográficas de la autora. Quizás por ello, Kaye Gibbons se sitúa desde el principio en un lugar seguro, en la casa de la madre que ella escogió y que por fin le pudo dar «la vida hogareña» que necesitaba.

4.5 stars.

I first saw this book on my dad's shelves. It was small, and I thought about reading it. However, I never got around to it until we read the first two paragraphs in English class, as we were working on character analysis. I took the book home from that class, and immediately started reading.

At first, I wasn't sure how I felt about the book. It took me a little to get used to the lack of quotation marks and commas, as well as the abrupt scene changes. It also wasn't as quick a read as I had originally expected (though it was still pretty fast). But as the story developed, I understood everything that Gibbons was doing, and the writing made sense. Ellen is a traumatized 11 year old. If her thoughts were presented as clearly as the characters in most books, it would not be fair or honest.

Ellen also matured and grew a shocking amount over the course of such a small book. The last chapter made me so happy to read, and I fell in love with her and Starletta by the end.

Overall, I really enjoyed Ellen Foster and recommend it to everybody.

I gave it 5 stars to get your attention, especially if you've read the reviews by those who gave it only 1 or 2 stars. I desire an argument with them, to rebutt their contentions that Ellen's character is not realistic and the book's ending is not sincere. I hate to think that there are people out there who may contribute to decisions about society (by voting or otherwise poloticking) when they are denying that other realities exist.

Thus I would like to share the following points with anyone who will read this, instead of writing direct rebuttals that may be taken as insults or provocations.

1. I was hesitant to read it once I learned that it was a novel and not a memoir. I had loved the movie and been misinformed that it was based on a real person's life. I had discussed it with several people I've befriended over the years because of our similar backgrounds: all similar to Ellen's. I doubted someone could tell this kind of truth without their own experience. But perhaps she (Kaye Gibbons) is "a keen observer of others".

2. I was impressed by the author's commitment to stay with the narrator's voice though I am sure there must have been times she wanted to tell things differently. I have been attempting to write my own story. It is not easy.

3. I found the character's persona very realistic. Not only did the task of SURVIVAL force me to develop a mature voice, at an early age, but in choosing service occupations, I have encountered many others who had that experience in their youth.

4. I also found the character's commitment to thriving instead of just surviving to be believable and loveable. That is the special something that helped me and some of my other friends become self-sufficient and reach something that might be called a "happy ending". In my career I have often been involved in efforts to give people skills to do just that. I first identified it in myself when I read something of Alice Walkers (perhaps "in search of our mother's gardens") which discussed the necessity of 'planning skills' (and 'vision') for anyone to surmount their limitations.

I look forward to reading the sequel and hope it is just as well written.

Little gem of a book and ultimately a very clever story about a horribly abused and neglected foster child. Ellen is incredibly resilient and she’s determined to find herself a loving home. The story isn’t depressing at all despite what its content would suggest. Loved this book.

The first line of this book hooked me. I had to know!!
"When I was little I would think of ways to kill my daddy."

Ellen is looking a few years back into her life telling us about her abusive, alcoholic father and unwell mother who passes away in the very early chapters. Ellen is very industrious in how she takes care of herself at 9-11 years old and getting passed around from house to house. Her BFF Starletta is a little black girl whose family tries to look after her now and again. Set in the 60s and a stream of consciousness storytelling style, we get to see Ellen as she grows in her self-awareness and in the world around her in a time of racial unrest.

This book was extremely hard to follow since it is told from a child's perspective with an extremely Southern drawl. You have to read most of it out loud to make sense of the dialogue, which is written out phonetically. Also, there are confusing flashbacks and flash forwards in the chapters that made me dizzy. I was thankful that the book was short because I might not have finished it otherwise.

If I could give this less than one star...I would!

I picked this gem of a novel up at Borders' going out of business sale on my way home from work last night and devoured it -- cover to cover -- in a couple of hours. Eleven-year-old Ellen's uniquely insightful voice kept the tone of the novel from sinking into the saccharine sweetness of an annoyingly precocious child’s narrative. Her descriptions of attempted incest, rampant racism (often her own), and domestic violence are all the more horrific for the matter-of-fact way in which they are detailed. Despite the sordid and tragic, and often shocking subject matter, I found this a charming read. Ellen’s savvy smarts added much needed humor and I adored her unabashed materialism. I don't know if it was the loveliness of the ending or the two glasses of red wine I drank immediately prior to reading the ending, but there may have been one or two tears shed. On sober morning reflection, I questioned if the ending was a little too "The Little Princess" but then decided, hell, we all deserve a happy ending here and there.

This story is told through the eyes of an eleven-year old child, Ellen, & told in a "now & then format". Because things were told from her POV, I was never really sure as to whether these were how events had actually occurred or were Ellen's take on what had happened. As a result I often felt I was missing something.

There's a quote on the back cover that says "Filled with lively, humor, compassion and integrity…Ellen Foster maybe the most trustworthy character in recent fiction." - that makes me feel I've been reading a completely different book! I've seen so many reviews praising the book but I found it sad & a little depressing most of the time - Ellen certainly went through far more than any child ever should. Maybe a lot came from reading between the lines but I'm so bad at that…

That said the feel of the tale being narrated by a child was quite convincing, I don't want to give away any of the story but there is a point where something is revealed about her name & this made me smile yet feel heartbreakingly sad.

Overall an interesting enough read but not to my taste.

I read 2 of this authors books years ago and didn't like her stories. But I decided to try once more. I still don't like them. I just Don't like books about dysfunctional families. Dysfunctional people is 1 thing, families is quite a different story.