Ellen Foster and Table For Two

 Ellen Foster by Kaye Gibbons

A short novel - 126 pages in my copy - with a lot of heart. Nine year old Ellen is someone you simply must meet. Living in circumstances too hard for any child, she faces them head on with pluck and humour, and breath-taking honesty. Seeing life through Ellen's eyes is an experience you shouldn't miss. It's heart-breaking, and heart-warming, and altogether wonderful. You will love her.   

Table For Two by Amor Towles

Amor Towles is such a good writer - A Gentleman in Moscow was radiant - but the stories in this collection didn't appeal to me. I don't seem to have much luck with short stories, I think because I don't get to know the characters as well as I'd like before we're on to a new group of people, and I always want to know more than a short story has room to tell. I did like a couple of these stories, but the plot of the last one just wasn't my cup of tea and it was the longest by far. I could still appreciate the crafting of it though, to the point where I feel a little guilty about not liking it. The fault is with the reader, not the writer.