READERS GUIDE

BECOMING ELLEN Reader’s guide.
 
 
1. In Becoming Ellen, Ellen learns that it’s important to be “useful” in life. How does she begin to live this philosophy?
 
2. Why is Ellen the only one who Seth, the kid who lives in the basement, will ever be able to trust and believe in?
 
3. In what ways does the discovery of baking, and the ability to produce something tasty, even beautiful, change Ellen?
 
4. The cellist Rupert and Ellen seem likely friends, but they are both excruciatingly shy. How does this reticence enhance their possible connection or keep them apart?
 
5. Thelma, the produce manager at Costco, is “different” in her own way. How does Ellen relate to that difference? Thelma refuses to be bullied by dock manager Eric—or anyone else, for that matter. Discuss how witnessing this display of courage changes Ellen.
 
6. When we meet Justice and Temerity’s parents, we discover that father Andy is far more badly scarred than Ellen ever was. Why is this such a revelation for her? How has it helped make the twins who they are?
 
7. The idea of helping someone seems very alien to Ellen. So when Lydia “falls into her lap,” why do you think Ellen feels compelled to do something?
 
8. The social worker, Serena, is a terrifying figure to Ellen. Discuss how people who spend their lives trying to help others while working with a flawed system’s insufficient resources can be viewed in this way. Is it fair?
 
9. For the first time, we see that Temerity, too, has inhibitions and fears. Do you believe this is due to a lack of trust in others or in herself? Does she have reason to see herself as the flawed partner in a relationship?
 
10. Ellen finds out that her birth mother is dead and that there is a family member out there whom she wasn’t aware of. Why is it so impossible for her to face this fact? If you found out about a sibling you didn’t know you had, would you try to find him or her? Is it important that Ellen and her newly discovered relative are biologically related?
 
11.  Ellen has seen so much in her young life that she reacts coldly to the struggles of people around her. Discuss how living in a world with so much suffering and indifference can change one’s point of view and affect one’s capacity to be “touched” by the plight of others.
 
12. Ellen has changed dramatically from the beginning of Invisible Ellen to the end of Becoming Ellen. What changes have you seen in her over the course of Shari Shattuck’s two novels?