by Noella Noelophile®
Books are a lifelong love for me.
If that’s you, as well, you and/or some of your 2015 gift recipients might enjoy these.
Invisible Ellen, by Shari Shattuck.
Maybe one of the best inspirational stories I’ve ever read. And–Shari Shattuck just published a sequel, “Becoming Ellen”, this past August! Can’t wait to read it.
Protagonist Ellen Homes is a life observer with some serious scars–both literally and figuratively. Morbidly-obese Ellen lives in a small Chelsea apartment, works nights as a cleaner at a big-box store and watches life from her back windows. She considers her neighbors, with whom she does not interact, to be her “pets”. Painstakingly, she observes the minute details of their lives, recording them in a notebook.
Then an incident on Ellen’s commute to work leads to an unlikely friendship with Temerity–a spunky and resourceful young musician who is also completely blind. As the two become closer, Ellen’s life changes in ways she could never have imagined.
Shari Shattuck has a compassionate perspective on Ellen’s past and the experiences that shaped the person we meet in the opening pages. She relates Ellen’s story with warmth and humor, and creates a delightful character in Temerity. Shattuck seems very familiar with commonly-held misconceptions about disabilities, and has a good time exploding them through funny, irrepressible Temerity and the journey on which she guides Ellen.
Now, as of summer, 2015, I am also an Amazon affiliate. If you would like to order this book through my Amazon link, that would be great–I do need you to know I receive a small commission on any sales made this way.
Whether you do that or not, though, please consider supporting the author–and the others I’ll be recommending. I’ve linked to each one’s personal webpage first (and no, I DON’T get commission for that. Getting to read their books is a nice gift).