Beginning of Essay
"When I was little I would think of ways to kill my daddy." [P.1], says eleven-year-old Ellen. Thus the young narrator begins her life-story, in the process painting an extraordinary self-portrait. “” is a powerful story of a young girl growing up in a burdens ....

Middle of Essay
.... Ellen's parents die, and her grandmother dies, but this isn’t really a great loss for Ellen. Her mother was a frail and sick woman whom Ellen was constantly protecting from her drunken father. For a time, Ellen’s Art teacher, Julia, and her husband move Ellen into their home. She feels, for the first time, that she is apart of a loving family. She describes, in the book, “ the three of us could pass for a family on the street.” {P. 55} Unfortunately, the juvenile courts system must always intervene, and her mean old Grandmother takes over her life. Her grandmother treats her badly. She acts as if Ellen is to blame for her daughter's death. ....