Effects of Being a Foster Child

Discuss the June 2017 Book of the Month, Superhighway by Alex Fayman. Superhighway is the first book in the Superhighway Trilogy, so feel free to use this forum to discuss not only the first book but also the other books in the series.

View Superhighway on Bookshelves
User avatar
PRAXIDES
Posts: 46
Joined: 13 Jun 2017, 03:14
Favorite Book: <a href="http://forums.onlinebookclub.org/shelve ... 98862">The 11.05 Murders</a>
Bookshelf Size: 12
Reviewer Page: onlinebookclub.org/reviews/by-praxides.html
Latest Review: "Missing Pieces" by Christine Betts

Re: Effects of Being a Foster Child

Post by PRAXIDES »

kandscreeley wrote:Not being a foster child myself, I'm not sure I can really speculate too much on this. However, I do believe that our experiences shape who we are. That's not to say that we can't rise above those circumstances and experiences. I do believe that these shaped Alex and maybe even caused some of his behaviors.
I totally agree with you on that.
Latest Review: "Missing Pieces" by Christine Betts
User avatar
Mailis
Posts: 282
Joined: 29 Jan 2018, 08:36
Currently Reading: The Employee Millionaire
Bookshelf Size: 58
Reviewer Page: onlinebookclub.org/reviews/by-mailis.html
Latest Review: There and Back There Again by Andrew Alsup
Reading Device: B00JG8GOWU

Post by Mailis »

Our foster system is inadequate in so many ways and I understand that this is widely the case almost in every other country as well. It is such a delicate process and has so many different factors that equate the overall outcome and happiness of the child that moves through the system and sadly almost everything is handled by the never-ending rules but only few involved really care.
User avatar
Cristina Chifane
Previous Member of the Month
Posts: 2061
Joined: 07 Jan 2018, 03:51
Favorite Book: The Magic Mountain
Currently Reading:
Bookshelf Size: 898
Reviewer Page: onlinebookclub.org/reviews/by-cristina-chifane.html
Latest Review: The Fold by Dennis Lee
Reading Device: B00JG8GOWU

Post by Cristina Chifane »

Let's not forget Alex was finally rejected by both his foster families and also physically abused by the former and emotionally abused by the latter. I think these experiences shape his future lack of commitment and somehow detached attitude toward other people, especially young girls who in his mind are prospective wives and mothers and this would involve having a family of his own.
"The madness of writing is the antidote to true madness." (Hanif Kureishi)
Latest Review: The Fold by Dennis Lee
User avatar
mamalui
Posts: 322
Joined: 15 Feb 2018, 11:11
Favorite Book: Trip to Adele
Currently Reading: Split Adam
Bookshelf Size: 198
Reviewer Page: onlinebookclub.org/reviews/by-mamalui.html
Latest Review: The MECE Muse by Christie Lindor
Reading Device: 1400697484

Post by mamalui »

Jaime Lync wrote: 01 Jun 2017, 22:08 I think that foster children are not that much different from children who live with their biological parents. None of us choose our birth parents. I think that Alex might have been negatively affected by the foster parents that took him in but he had the lady who ran the foster care centre so he was better off than someone stuck with bad parents.
I absolutely agree with this. Sometimes people have such bad parents and a traumatising upbringing that can make any foster child feel lucky!
No idea is a bad idea.

Life is what happens to you while you are busy making other plans.
User avatar
Jgideon
Posts: 667
Joined: 03 Apr 2018, 03:37
Favorite Book: Gates to Tangier
Currently Reading:
Bookshelf Size: 253
Reviewer Page: onlinebookclub.org/reviews/by-jgideon.html
Latest Review: Sundays with Sister ssj by Anthony Happy LaRiccia

Post by Jgideon »

I really sympathized with Alex's story about his foster parents. Personally, I didn't grow up as a foster child and wouldn't comment on the effect of being one.
User avatar
holsam_87
Posts: 858
Joined: 03 Feb 2018, 15:45
Currently Reading: The Unbound Soul
Bookshelf Size: 1691
Reviewer Page: onlinebookclub.org/reviews/by-holsam-87.html
Latest Review: Herai by Aaron D Key
Reading Device: B00IKPYKWG

Post by holsam_87 »

kandscreeley wrote: 01 Jun 2017, 11:41 Not being a foster child myself, I'm not sure I can really speculate too much on this. However, I do believe that our experiences shape who we are. That's not to say that we can't rise above those circumstances and experiences. I do believe that these shaped Alex and maybe even caused some of his behaviors.
That was my thought too. Alex seemed to have a problem with making attachments in his relationships.
Samantha Holtsclaw

“We’ve all got both light and dark inside us. What matters is the part we choose to act on. That’s who we really are.”

—J. K. Rowling, Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix
Latest Review: Herai by Aaron D Key
User avatar
Storm+
Book of the Month Participant
Posts: 199
Joined: 01 Jun 2018, 04:25
Currently Reading: WatchDogs Abnormal Beginnings
Bookshelf Size: 100
Reviewer Page: onlinebookclub.org/reviews/by-storm.html
Latest Review: The Promise of Whiteness: Its Past and Its Future by Martha R. Bireda

Post by Storm+ »

Everyone is shaped by their experiences growing up; this is not an experience unique to foster children. However, foster children do tend to face different struggles from children who grow up with their biological families, especially if their families were loving. As a result, I do believe that Alex's status as a foster child did help shape his behavior, although it's hard to tell for sure specifically how. Did growing up without parents cause him to reject the authority of the adults who try to save him from himself? Does his deep desire for affection cause him to become obsessed with Eva while at the same time keeping him from saying no when he has the opportunity to cheat on her? Perhaps, but perhaps he would have behaved the same way even with the guidance of his biological parents.
Atara Miles
Posts: 212
Joined: 22 Sep 2019, 17:26
Currently Reading:
Bookshelf Size: 16
Reviewer Page: onlinebookclub.org/reviews/by-atara-miles.html
Latest Review: Days of the Giants by RJ Petrella

Post by Atara Miles »

I think it made him trust a whole lot less. He doesn't divulge the secret of his powers to anyone except those who could explain it, even Mrs. Jenkins, whom he views as a mother figure. I also think it makes him a little dismissive of those he encountered later in life, like his love interests as we saw.
Sarah Schmidt
In It Together VIP
Posts: 543
Joined: 11 Nov 2020, 15:52
Currently Reading: The Vine Witch
Bookshelf Size: 271
Reviewer Page: onlinebookclub.org/reviews/by-sarah-schmidt.html
Latest Review: First Survivor by Mark Unger

Post by Sarah Schmidt »

I think his experiences stuck with him and determine how he goes about viewing the world and how he subsequently acts in it, something I think is common to most foster children.
Moneybag
Posts: 389
Joined: 16 May 2022, 13:40
Currently Reading:
Bookshelf Size: 33
Reviewer Page: onlinebookclub.org/reviews/by-moneybag.html
Latest Review: Reconfigurement by E. Alan Fleischauer

Post by Moneybag »

Foster children are not always this social kind of people.
Post Reply

Return to “Discuss "Superhighway" by Alex Fayman”