ReadingGrrls Paper Safari

Title: How Open Should My Adoption Be?: Levels of Openness In Adoption (Guide to a Healthy Adoptive Family, Adoption Parenting, and Open Relationships Book 3) by Russell Elkins Publisher:  Inky's Nest Publishing Format: Kindle Pages: 50 Genre: Adoption, Synopsis:  This book is part of a four book series that can be purchased together as an ebook set. An open adoption relationship can be scary! Open adoption means that an adopted child has a relationship with his or her biological family. But just how “open” should that relationship be? There is nothing in this world like an open adoption. Because of that, it’s hard to foresee the many different scenarios that will come. You do your best to plan ahead, but you’ll still find yourself in situations you hadn’t fully considered. Should you connect with your child’s birthparents on social media? Should you allow face-to-face visits? How often should you share photos and letters? This book cannot answer these types ...

Title:   10 Adoption Essentials: What You Need to Know About Open Adoption (Guide to a Healthy Adoptive Family, Adoption Parenting, and Relationships) by Russell Elkins Publisher: Alcha Publishing 36 pages Genre: Adoption Synopsis:  These are the ten things you wish you knew before choosing adoption—the things adopted kids wish their adoptive parents knew before making the adoption decision. Many people begin to consider adopting a child without understanding how much adoption has changed over recent years. That’s understandable. The concept of having a relationship between birth parents and the adoptive family is still foreign to a lot of people. While open adoption has become increasingly more common, the tragedy is that so many hopeful adoptive parents don’t understand how their life will change once birth parents become part of the picture. Too many adoptions start out open only to close communication when things get difficult. Every open adoption is unique and com...

Title:   Hoping to Adopt: How to Create the Ideal Adoption Profile (Preparing to Adopt) by Russell Elkins Publisher:  CreateSpace Independent Publishing Platform 38 pages Genre: adoption, Synopsis:  It’s cliché to say it, but you never get a second chance to make a first impression. Clichés are cliché because they’re true. When a potential birth parent is browsing through profiles, being able to create an ideal first impression is essential for hopeful adoptive parents. An ideal profile can help catch the eye of potential birth parents by more effectively showing how their homes work, look, and feel. Because few (if any) adoption agencies use the “first come, first served” method anymore, some couples are chosen very quickly— but others, who might not have the right tools, wait for years. If you’re hoping to adopt, there are things you can do to greatly increase the odds that you will be one of the couples whose wait is a short one. Not all adoption agencies are th...

Title:   Out of the Shadows: Stories of Adoption and Reunion by Linda Back McKay Publisher: North Star Press 175 Pages Genre: Adoption, non-fiction Synopsis:  Linda Back McKay's Out of the Shadows: Stories of Adoption and Reunion (North Star Press, 2012) is both a sequel and companion book to the original Shadow Mothers. It shows the real experiences of birthmothers who felt compelled to give up their babies for adoption during the 1960s and 1970s. Following these stories through time, the book also brings to light the profound and challenging aspects of reuniting with a long-lost child. Out of the Shadows includes new and updated stories, viewpoints from all sides of the adoption triad, advice for reuniting families and discussion points for book clubs. Review:  Ms McKay has put together 11 stories of women who placed their children for adoption and have since been reunited with them.  These stories, told in their own voices, are powerful, sad, joyful and ...

Title: In on it: What adoptive parents would like you to know about adoption by Elizabeth O'Toole Publisher: Fig Press 155 Pages Genre: Adoption Synopsis: This is the adoption book for grandparents and friends, neighbors and colleagues, and aunts and uncles of adoptive families.  Whether you're excited or worried, committed or a bit reluctant, experienced or unfamiliar with adoption, In On It is an informative, friendly and very useful adoption guide for anyone touched by adoption. Review: I tend to just keep all my reviews of adoption books on my work blog, (I work for an adoption agency) particularly if they are non-fiction, but this year I joined an adoption reading challenge so I'm going to be posting some of my reviews here as well. In On It is a great book for families of adoption. This book is smart, thoughtful, and full of humor. Elisabeth O'Toole guides readers through adoption--and all the unique stuff that accompanies parenting in a family with a...