Book picks similar to
An Adoptee Lexicon by Karen Pickell


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The Bend in Redwood Road


Danielle Stewart - 2019
    No more than a quiet wondering around the edges of her mind.   What has become of the baby she left behind?   Smiling through the pain and suffering in silence, Leslie Laudon marches forward. Embracing the life skillfully designed by her husband Paul. Living right could be penance for an impossible choice made with an uneasy heart. Dutiful and anchoring, Leslie poured herself into her other children. Nurturing them through infancy, protecting them as toddlers, guiding them as teens. As her youngest child heads off to college with her suitcases and coordinating dorm room accessories, so goes Leslie’s identity. The chaotic life of a busy working mother threatens to become dangerously quiet. Quiet enough to hear the voices she’s tried to silence for decades.   Gwen Fox was adopted by two perfect people. Noel and Millie have always treated her the same as their two biological sons. Her parents love is strong and unwavering, yet a soul-deep ache still lingers. Plagued by an unnamed, hard to explain, longing Gwen could never shake.   Riddled with doubt and dragged down by the undertow of unanswered questions, Leslie and Gwen both find their lives suddenly upended. One seeks the truth about the day she was born. The other seeks herself, the woman she was before motherhood. Before she made a choice to leave a piece of her heart lying asleep in the hospital nursery.   In this complex journey for answers, blame is abundant. Guilt is thick enough to choke on. Marriages are brought to the brink of disaster. As the ripples of the past vibrate through their lives, Gwen and Leslie realize there is no turning back. What they have put into motion cannot be stopped. The road toward the truth will be littered with casualties.

Dandelion on My Pillow, Butcher Knife Beneath: The True Story of an Amazing Family that Lived with and Loved Kids who Killed


Nancy Thomas - 2002
    Like a diamond in the rough, all of the kids who killed were tough and protected on the outside while hiding a glimmer of promise inside. For many of these children, the Thomases were their last hope. With the guidance of this courageous family, their stories of survival and victory break the unwritten code of silence about children without a conscience. Through therapeutic intervention comes the spellbinding metamorphosis of nine children. Although it stems from the deepest of human suffering, each shining triumph will leave you uplifted and celebrating life.

Whisper My Secret


JB Rowley - 2007
    Eventually, rescued from her despair by tall, dark and handsome George Rowley who fell in love her, Myrtle started a new life and had seven more children. She buried the grief of losing her first children deep within and kept her pain secret. JB and her siblings were unaware of the existence of Myrtle’s first three children until after she died. Desperate to know how such a thing could happen to a devoted and caring mother, JB went on a journey to find out. What she discovered was a heartbreaking story of loss. It was a long time before JB was able to work out that her mother kept her early life and her first family secret out of misplaced guilt and shame. To redress that, JB decided to tell the whole world her mother’s secret. Whisper My Secret is a proud declaration that Myrtle did nothing deserving of guilt or shame.

How Much Is Enough?: Everything You Need to Know to Steer Clear of Overindulgence and Raise Likeable, Responsible and Respectful Ch


Jean Illsley Clarke - 2003
    But despite one's good intentions, the life-enhancing abundance heaped on our children often becomes more than they need or can handle, and the line is crossed into overindulgence. In How Much is Enough?, best-selling parenting and family experts Clarke, Dawson, and Bredehoft offer an in-depth look at how damaging overindulgence is to children, affecting their ability to learn many of the important life skills they need to thrive as adults. In warm and empathetic language, the authors reveal the three different ways children are overindulged (giving too much, being over-nurturing, and providing soft structure), guide parents in determining whether they're doing something overindulgent, and show them how to do things differently. The truth is that overindulgence is not the badge of a bad parent; in fact, it comes directly from having a good and generous heart. Based on solid, groundbreaking research involving 1,200 parents and their children, How Much is Enough? gives parents the insight and advice they need to parent in an effective and loving way and put their children on track for a happy and successful life.

Gone Before


Sam Hepburn - 2020
    She vanished without a trace. Until now…Fifteen years after the abduction, Phoebe knocks on Kay Duncan’s door, clutching a yellow rainhat with Maya’s name stitched into the back. Phoebe is convinced that she is Maya Duncan, and that the woman behind the door is her real mother.When Phoebe sees Kay, the memories come flooding back, and it seems that mother and daughter are to be reunited at last. But when a shocking discovery shatters the fragile relationship they have begun to build, Kay commits suicide, leaving Phoebe riddled with guilt.Alone and unanchored, Phoebe travels to London to dig into Kay’s life, hoping to uncover the truth behind her own identity. But as she pieces together Kay’s past, Phoebe discovers a disturbing link to the woman who raised her, and a terrible secret that even now could put her life in danger.Gone Before is an utterly addictive ‘ripped-from-the-headlines’ thriller that you will read in one breathless gulp. Perfect for fans of Lisa Jewell, Gone Girl and The Silent Patient.

One Nation, Uninsured: Why the U.S. Has No National Health Insurance


Jill Quadagno - 2005
    In fact, one in eight Americans--a shocking 43 million people--do not have any health care insurance at all. One Nation, Uninsured offers a vividly written history of America's failed efforts to address the health care needs of its citizens. Covering the entire twentieth century, Jill Quadagno shows how each attempt to enact national health insurance was met with fierce attacks by powerful stakeholders, who mobilized their considerable resources to keep the financing of health care out of the government's hands. Quadagno describes how at first physicians led the anti-reform coalition, fearful that government entry would mean government control of the lucrative private health care market. Doctors lobbied legislators, influenced elections by giving large campaign contributions to sympathetic candidates, and organized grassroots protests, conspiring with other like-minded groups to defeat reform efforts. As the success of Medicare and Medicaid in the mid-century led physicians and the AMA to start scaling back their attacks, the insurance industry began assuming a leading role against reform that continues to this day. One Nation, Uninsured offers a sweeping history of the battles over health care. It is an invaluable read for anyone who has a stake in the future of America's health care system.

Unraveled


Heidi McCahan - 2014
    She’s spent years running from her scandalous past and now she’s forced to confront an uncertain future. Blake Tully, wildly successful owner of Emerald Cove’s new whitewater rafting and kayaking business, finds Lauren’s unexpected reappearance in his life ignites old feelings. Although she broke his heart once, he longs to give his childhood sweetheart a second chance. Will Lauren allow her shameful secret to define her? Can Blake forgive her when he discovers the reason she’s been hiding? Follow the story of these two shattered hearts as they discover the beauty of grace and forgiveness.

At Any Cost: Overcoming Every Obstacle to Bring Our Children Home


Mike Jones - 2015
    Their stunning observation: "It was the least we could do!"

The Secret Daughter


Kelly Rimmer - 2015
    As she was taken from me I knew I might never see my daughter again. 38 years later… ‘You were adopted’. Three short words and Sabina’s life fractures. There would forever be a Before those words, and an After. Pregnant with her own child, Sabina can’t understand how a mother could abandon her daughter, or why her parents have kept the past a secret. Determined to find the woman who gave her away, what she discovers will change everything, not just for Sabina, but for the women who have loved her all these years. From the bestselling author of Me Without You comes another touching, beautifully told story about the pain of separation and the enduring strength of love.

I Wished for You: An Adoption Story


Marianne Richmond - 2008
    Full description

Posers, Fakers, and Wannabes: Unmasking the Real You


Brennan Manning - 2003
    Adapted for teens and students from Brennan Manning’s best-seller Abba’s Child, this book will help you see how God’s grace sets us free to be who we really are. No more games, no acts, no masks.Discover your identity in Christ and be set free.

Moses: In the Footsteps of the Reluctant Prophet (Moses Series)


Adam Hamilton - 2017
    Sinai, the Nile, the Red Sea and the wilderness exploring the sites of Moses' life. Using historical information, archaeological data, and biblical text, Hamilton guides us in the footsteps of this reluctant prophet who grew in his relationship with God and by the end of life had successfully fulfilled the role he was given.Turn your own reluctance into boldness as you examine the significant challenges facing Moses and how God shaped his character and life in powerful ways.Additional components for a six-week study include a comprehensive Leader Guide and a DVD featuring author and pastor Adam Hamilton. For a church-wide study, youth and children resources are also available.

I Belong to No One: One woman's true story of family violence, forced adoption and ultimate triumphant survival


Gwen Wilson - 2015
    This is one woman's story of all she lost and how hard she fought to survive.A teenager in the 1970s, Gwen Wilson grew up in Western Sydney. It was a tough childhood. Illegitimate, fatherless - her mother in and out of psychiatric hospitals; it would have been easy for anyone to despair and give up. Yet Gwen had hope. Despite it all, she was a good student, fighting hard for a scholarship and a brighter future.Then she met Colin. Someone to love who would love her back. But that short-lived love wasn't the sanctuary Gwen was looking for. It was the start of a living hell. Rape was just the beginning. By sixteen she was pregnant, her education abandoned. Australian society did not tolerate single mothers; prejudice and discrimination followed her everywhere. In an effort to save her son, Jason, from the illegitimacy and deprivation she'd grown up with, Gwen chose to marry Colin - and too quickly the nightmare of physical abuse, poverty and homelessness seemed inescapable.In 1974, in the dying days of the forced adoption era in Australia, this isolated teenager was compelled to make a decision about her child that would tear her life apart, one she would never truly come to terms with.I Belong to No One is one woman's story of all she lost and how hard she fought to survive and eventually triumph.

The Baby Thief: The Untold Story of Georgia Tann, the Baby Seller Who Corrupted Adoption


Barbara Bisantz Raymond - 2007
    Part social history, part detective story, part exposé, The Baby Thief is a riveting investigative narrative that explores themes that continue to reverberate today.

Boss On A Leash


Kara Hart - 2021
    I got a billionaire boyfriend instead.My name’s Ali Greenwald, and I’m taking a break from men. I had my vow of celibacy all planned out. Then I met Marc Wylan, my billionaire kryptonite.He’s not sporting a ring. And he’s got a metal credit card with a high spending limit. Oo-la-la.Seattle’s favorite billionaire is tall, dark, and handsome. An absolute catch. But we’ve got opposite goals. And he’s a total jerk. He’s ahead of me in line to buy the puppy of my dreams. My puppy. He thinks he’s going to get my number.He’s wrong.After stealing my dog, he makes me an offer. One date, in exchange for a sincere apology. Needing an escape, I make a counter-offer. If we run into each other again, I’ll give him my number. There’s no way that will happen in Seattle.Well, it happens. I’m his daughter’s teacher. And now I’m really screwed.Instead of handing him my number, I get defensive. I make a new offer. Whoever holds out the longest wins the dog. I’m not giving up.Problem is, I’m finding out his only defect is that he’s perfect. Too perfect. I keep an eye out for his fatal flaws. There are none. He’s a great dad.Who am I kidding? I’m falling for the man who pushed ahead of me in line. Pretty soon, I won’t need a dog. I’ll be on all fours, but he’ll be the one wearing a leash.We’ll see how long he’ll last.