October 19, 2014
Your Fall Adoption Reading List
Because it’s fall now, and every new season needs its own reading list!
The Girls Who Went Away. Adoption has its own painful history. Multiple in fact, as there have been so many women in different cultures through the ages who were forced to place their children for adoption for one reason or another. This book follows the stories of women who were forced to give their babies away for adoption in the years after WWII and before Roe vs. Wade. In this book, the voices of these women are given new life as important awareness is spread about this oft looked-over period in history.
In Their Own Voices: Transracial Adoptees Tell Their Stories. In this book, two dozen biracial and black children who were adopted by white parents are interviewed, sharing discussion and thoughts on identity, social issues, growing up, as well was religious, political and economic backgrounds. Such important stories to tell, and definitely an illuminating read for adoptive parents of transracial families.
Parenting The Hurt Child: Helping Adoptive Families Heal and Grow. This book provides a great deal of information for parents who are dealing with a child dealing with hurt or past pain from issues in their life. This is especially helpful if your child was adopted at an older age, and their background involves trauma, pain, or emotional issues. Not only does the book guide you through helping your child, but it also provides tips and information on maintaining your own stability—a fundamental, yet often overlooked, necessity.
Jessica Lost: A Story of Birth, Adoption and the Meaning of Motherhood. This story follows a mother and the daughter she placed for adoption four decades later, once they were reunited. In alternating chapters the two women tell the stories of their lives from their own perspective. It’s an incredible story that shares valuable and inspiring portraits of motherhood and family.
Mamalita. Follow the story of two parents as they uncover devastating levels of corruption in their adoption process. When they travel to to Guatemala to bring home their daughter, they not only learn more about the country’s beautiful culture, but of the corrosive process affecting so many waiting families—many of whom are still waiting, desperately, to adopt their child. This compelling memoir is a must-read!