By Ariana Oman

Foster Me

“My parents, all of them, are beautifully flawed.”

Life for Ariana is not a ribbon floating through time collecting happy memories; it is a rope she clings to that transforms into a noose when she becomes a foster child. Not every child born is given a stable home. Some face tragedy and are often severed from family ties. This is how a foster child is created, how Ariana became one. Wrapped inside a letter she writes to her deceased mother, Ariana reveals her journey. As a foster child, she faces her fears and more heartbreaks. With loving guidance from her foster families, she learns how to release the rope and transform it into a ribbon.

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Foster Me

About the Cover

I chose dolphins and the ocean for the cover design because dolphins are the perfect icon for foster children. Like foster children, dolphins are diverse. For example, there are pink river dolphins, killer whales, and Atlantic bottlenose dolphins. And more importantly, dolphins began life on land; in time they evolved to live in the oceans. Foster children find their way to their foster families, not originating in them. The parallels of foster children and dolphins are obvious. Besides, within the pages of Foster Me are dolphins who are “characters” and Ariana looks to them during times of sorrow and hopelessness. The ocean represents emotions which run deep in this novel. I did not hold back from pulling on heartstrings. Silly as it may seem, I even get choked up when I read some of the passages.

Helped me understand behind the scenes of what foster kids go thru.

When I was younger I had always thought I would adopt or become a foster parent so when I first saw this book it had me from the title. It pulled at my heartstrings and I went thru all the emotions the main character felt. I feel like I have better understanding what it’s like to be in foster care and what it takes to be a good foster parent. Kudos to the author because she was able to pull me into the story and really feel the characters because of the ease of her writing style and how intriguing it was. I hope current foster parents, or those that want to be, read this so they can better understand what a kiddo could be going thru and know how to love and care for them the way they deserve and need to be loved. I also hope children who are in foster care, or who were, read this because I think they will hear themselves echoed in these pages.

Courage and love triumph over others’ selfishness

Foster Me is well written and quickly immerses the reader into the mind of Ariana, a young girl who has become without parents and enters the foster care system. The story contains life lessons both young and old readers can extract from the pages as the author draws you into the story. Foster Me would be an excellent addition to summer reading lists for middle school and high school students. The story is thoughtfully written as Ariana makes her way to adulthood with integrity, intelligence and hard work despite the many challenges brought upon her in the foster care system. A passage key in my memory from the book is “You have demonstrated a maturity, a sense of responsibility, and a nobleness that moves me to tears. I’m sorry the only thing I can say to describe it is that I’m so very, very proud of you, Ariana. I’m proud of you.”

Oh my. What so many don't know.

I read this book in less than 24 hours. Beautifully written. So many people do not know what they need and have it. So many don’t know what they need until they discover it.

Excerpt

Page 102 – 5th Paragraph

I remember her tender, fragile smile and her embarrassed, longing stare. And I remember what Paul said to me as I loaded her suitcase on the departing bus, “Caroline is one of the homeless children. A few get to go to camp.” He said nothing more. He didn’t have to. He could see it all over my face. I, more than anyone, should have looked past her appearance and braved a look inside her. I was afraid I would find myself.

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