Rating: 
Summary: Engrossing, heartwrenching, wonderous ....
Review: I stood by my bookcase looking at the spines of a half dozen books I haven't read yet and there was a diminutive little hardcover wedged into the mix -- Ellen Foster. I half-heartedly pulled it from the shelf and opened it to the first page and started reading a little just to see if it would be interesting enough to read. Well .... I stood rooted to that spot, standing by the bookcase, reading for some time. I was so engrossed in the story immediately that I forgot the time. This was a story that just pulls you right in and holds your heart until the end.
Poor little Ellen Foster is born to a very sickly mother with an abusive husband. Her poor mother dies near the beginning of the book, the one person who seemed to really love poor little Ellen. She is shuttled back and forth from relative to relative. They are cruel and selfish and let her know right up front that they don't want her. Gosh, your heart just breaks for this dear child. Don't want to say much more as I don't want to ruin the story for anyone.
This story is told in narrative form. It's as though little Ellen, very wise beyond her 11 years on this earth, is sitting right there next to you telling you the story of her life. There are no quotation marks, no dialog in the sense that you are used to, it's a rambling monologue about her life. You know what? You don't notice that, you just live this child's life as she tells it.
It's not all sadness as misery. It's also about triumph over the worst odds, triumph over what would knock most of us down, triumph of this wonderful little girl and where her life takes her. I love Ellen Foster.
You have got to get your hands on this book and dive in. You'll enjoy it to the point of forgetting time itself. You'll feel that Ellen Foster is a real person sitting there telling her story. Read this wonderful book ... doing so will enrich your life.
Rating: 
Summary: Written with a southern drawl like thick molasses
Review: This book holds the reader's attention from the beginning as Ellen's southern accent pours out like slow, thick molasses: "When I was little, I would think of ways to kill my daddy. I would figure out this or that way and run it down through my head until it got easy." I think that I'm still swishing this book around in my mouth trying to figure out what it tastes like (not molasses, maybe butter?). It's a short book (only 126 pages), so maybe I read it too quickly to digest it properly. There are two things that seem to make this book a candidate for Oprah's Book Club. First of all, ELLEN FOSTER is the story of a poor southern girl who is able to overcome the obstacles presented by her abusive family. Secondly, the book centers around the friendship between a black and a white girl. In between, you learn that Ellen loves to read and is extremely smart. She certainly outsmarts (and outlives) those people who never showed her the love she deserved. Since I'm originally from the southern US (southern Alabama to be exact), I looked for similarities to the way of life I recall in the deep south. I truly identified with the friendship that Ellen had with her black friend, Starletta. When I was 6, I became friends with a little black girl and was completely ostracized from the other people in my class because of my friendship with her. Unfortunately, she died in a house fire when we were 7. In ELLEN FOSTER, Ellen also has no friends except for her black friend. And she doesn't care what other people think about it (even though she is still concerned with drinking from a glass at Starletta's house and getting "black germs"). I'm still having difficulty with some of the details of the story, though. The author never says outright what decade the story is written in. However, it has to be after the 60's and before the 90's. I was surprised to find black people picking cotton in ELLEN FOSTER. Machines do that now and have been doing the cotton picking for years in the south. Also, I was surpised at the familiarity that Ellen Foster uses with her elders. She calls people by their first name rather than adding the requisite Ms. or Mr. in front of their name. However, the part of the book I had the most difficulty believing was the backwoods, hick English that Ellen uses in telling her story. Even though I grew up in the rural south, my vocabulary and speech pattern developed quite differently because of the multitude of books I read as a child. This should be evident in Ellen's speech, as it is evident in most well-read southerners I know. I was impressed, however, with Ellen's spunk. She knows what she wants and is determined to make it happen. At 10 years old, she is mature beyond her years. Ellen had such an unlucky beginning that I expected a sad ending. Amazingly enough, she gets all she ever wished for in the end. And that's the way life should be, right?
Rating:
Summary: laugh out loud
Review: I was laughing out loud with parts of this book!!! As a teacher, I saw alot of characteristics common in middle and high schoolers that made me relate to the novel. This was a great, quick read. If you're like me, and don't like "heavy," wordy novels, then this one is for you. Even with all the troubles Ellen has, this book will make you laugh.
Rating: 
Summary: unless your really sappy over cheesy books dont read this
Review: First off, whoever compared Ellen with Holden Caulfield should be shot. That is defacing a great nove. Second, does Ellen ever stop being a pain. I don't feel simpathy for her at all. It almost aggrivates me that this book was written. I give it one plus for the way it is written since I do find this very creative how the author uses past and present tense in telling one story. But thats as good as it gets. TRust me. Don't read it. Its just dull and annoying. Some might say it made them cry...it made me cry too...out of pain
Rating:
Summary: most wonderful book
Review: I usually hate reading. But not Ellen Foster.Ellen Foster is only a 11 year old girl wo is going through a lot in her life. This book is sending a message to everyone out their that is in a disfunctional alcoholic family, that they are NOT alone.This book should be read by people of all ages, especially people who have an alcoholic family menber or friend. This is definitely one book that i can read over and over. This book has taught me a lesson, never make friends when im older or marry an abusive alcoholic person, because I don't want to have to deal with anyhting!!!!!
Rating: 
Summary: One of the worst books I've ever read.
Review: It was so excrutiatingly boring I fell asleep many times while reading this book. It is FAR from an interesting read!! Seriously, it is not a book I would reccomend to anyone but insomniacs who want to be able to fall asleep. It's all whining, complaining and I guarantee you that Ellen will annoy the [stuff] out of you by the time you finish the book!!
Rating:
Summary: The world is full of Ellen Foster's
Review: The narrator is 11 year old Ellen Foster...Using a child's voice often works because of their complete honesty and perception of the world. Ellen's mother dies in the first couple chapters and she is left alone with her abusive,horrible father. Fortunately, he dies also (of his life/style) and Ellen begins her search for a momma. She lives w/ her momma's momma for a while which is a disaster because she is just as abusive or more than her horrible father. "You have your father's evil eyes," her momma's momma is continually telling her. Ellen lives with a mother and daughter who treat her like one of the dogs. Because after all, they are doing her a huge favor, allowing her into their home, feeding her, giving her a bed. Ellen lives with her aunt who is very sweet but only wants her for the weekend. "I thought I was staying," Ellen says.
"Just for the weekend, dear. Not to live." Ellen has a constant friend in Starletta. Now this may be her one hope, the one person who cares for her, even though Starletta happens to to black (at a time when whites did not associate w/ black people) Starletta is her one normal, decent, continual friend. One thing Ellen has is a survival instict. Hope. When all else is falling around her and the world is upside down, Ellen has a spark of hope. She sees this spark also in a woman she admires at church. "That's who I want as my momma" Ellen says. So she packs her bags on Christmas Eve and goes to this women's house.
The woman hugs her, invites her in, gives her a warm blanket. "All somebody really wants is for somebody to love them real good. Somebody to rub their back. Somebody to ask them questions. Somebody to care about them." Ellen finds this. Finally. She finds a new momma in a stranger who has enough love to pass it on. Somebody to love her good as we should all be loved.
Rating:
Summary: CONFUSING
Review: This book was the most lackluster book I have ever read. It was not only boring it was difficult, the Author is constantly switching from the past to the present which makes for terriblle reading, I would definetly not recommend this book!
Rating:
Summary: A short but powerful read!
Review: Kaye Gibbons portrayal of a young girl growing up in an abusive, dysfunctional home packs an emotional punch. Ellen hates her father but with good reason. He is an alcoholic who abuses his wife, Ellen's mother, and severely neglects Ellen. Ellen's survival of the abuse is remarkable. Yet, so many victims of abuse do survive. The story of abuse is told entirely from the child's point of view. The reader sees the inner strength it takes to survive such abuse as Ellen struggles to have some control over the events in her life. This book reminded me a lot of Dave Pelzer's A CHILD CALLED IT,another 5 star book. While Pelzer's book is nonfiction, the characterization of Ellen Foster also has the ring of truth.
Rating:
Summary: A wonderful novel.
Review: I recommend reading this novel, if you like reading about families living in a dysfunctional home. Ellen Foster is a short novel about a little girl Ellen living in a dysfunctional family. She is living with her drunken abusive father, since her mother lies peacefully in gods hands. She has her friend (Starletta) who really cares for her and so does Starletta's family. Ellen realizes that the friendship she has with Starletta helped her get on with her life. The best part of this book is that it describes everything that might happen in a broken home and I could just feel what she is going through. The worst was how she talks about killing her own father, but I would not blame her.
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