Three Little Words: A Memoir

"Sunshine, you're my baby and I'm your only mother. You must mind the one taking care of you, but she's not your mama." Ashley Rhodes-Courter spent nine years of her life in fourteen different foster homes, living by those words. As her mother spirals out of control, Ashley is left clinging to an unpredictable, dissolving relationship, all the while getting pulled deeper and deeper into the foster care system.

Painful memories of being taken away from her home quickly become consumed by real-life horrors, where Ashley is juggled between caseworkers, shuffled from school to school, and forced to endure manipulative, humiliating treatment from a very abusive foster family. In this inspiring, unforgettable memoir, Ashley finds the courage to succeed - and in doing so, discovers the power of her own voice.

Publisher: Atheneum Books for Young Readers
Published: 01/08/2008
Pages: 320
Weight: 0.87lbs
Size: 8.62h x 6.54w x 1.15d
ISBN: 9781416948063
Age: Young Adult

Accelerated Reader:
Reading Level: 5.4
Point Value: 12
Interest Level: Upper Grade
Quiz #/Name: 119448 / Three Little Words: A Memoir


Award: Georgia Peach Book Award for Teen Readers - Nominee
Award: Volunteer State Book Awards - Nominee
Award: Rhode Island Teen Book Award - Nominee
Award: Eliot Rosewater Indiana High School Book Award - Nominee
Award: Florida Teens Read - Nominee


Review Citation(s):
Kirkus Review - Children 11/15/2007 pg. 1204
School Library Journal 01/01/2008 pg. 145
Publishers Weekly 01/07/2008 pg. 56
Booklist 01/01/2008 pg. 56
Bulletin of Ctr for Child Bks 03/01/2008 pg. 302
Voice of Youth Advocates 06/01/2008 pg. 173 - Recommended - Better Than Most
Hornbook Guide to Children 10/01/2008 pg. 456 - Below Average, With Minor Flaw
Hornbook Guide to Children 07/01/2008 pg. 456 - Below Average, With Minor Flaw

About the Author
Rhodes-Courter, Ashley: - Ashley Rhodes-Courter has been featured in Teen People, The New York Times, USA TODAY, and Glamour, as well as on Good Morning America. Her first memoir, Three Little Words, began as an essay, which won a writing contest for high school students, and was published in The New York Times Magazine. She is also the author of Three More Words. A graduate of Eckerd College and a champion for the reformation of the foster care system, Ashley speaks internationally on foster care and adoption. Visit her at Rhodes-Courter.com.