Title: Becoming Ellen
Author: Shari Shattuck
Published: August 11, 2015 by G.P. Putnam's Sons
Pages: 304
Source: Penguin First to Read
Rating: 4/5
Goodreads
Ellen Homes is done being invisible. Well, sort of.
Living with her closest friends, Temerity and Justice, has helped her step out of the shell of invisibility she once hid away in. She still seeks refuge in solitary time and observing from afar, but she has pushed herself to open up to others in ways that bring her unexpected happiness.
But when a terrible bus crash upends her normal routine, Ellen finds herself on a whirlwind crusade for the unseen and downtrodden. Only this time, helping others—including two young children with no one else to turn to—will mean facing a pain from her past that she’s long tucked away.
Picking up where Invisible Ellen left off, Becoming Ellen returns us to the touching, poignant, and compassionate world of Ellen Homes as she learns how to navigate the world she has decided to become a part of.
My review:
I did not realize until after I began this book that it was actually the second book in a series (the first being Invisible Ellen). While I think it would probably add to the beginning of the book to have more of a backstory, I did not feel that it was not properly handled (by way of flashback snippets) in case the reader jumped in to this book first. I really enjoyed the characters in this book. I thought they were well done, and even though they all had their quirks, I could see myself wanting to be friends with them. Ellen still suffers from a lot of social anxiety, but in the end she gets the job done when it counts. My only criticism would probably be that I found it hard to believe that someone who was so obviously introverted would do some of the things (and take some of the chances) that she did, even if it was for the common good. Putting that aside though, this was a well written book that kept me turning pages to find out how everything would turn out. I could really feel Ellen's tension and trepidation throughout the pages of the book, and my heart went out to her as I cheered for her success! I'm not sure if there will be another book in the series (seems like there could be), but I will be sure to pick it up if there is.
A good read about a painfully shy introvert and how she comes out of her shell, for the good of her friends and society.
