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Adoption Matters: Orphan Train to Modern Day Nonfiction Short Stories of Adoption & Foster Care
Orphan Train to Modern Day Nonfiction Short Stories of Adoption & Foster CareBeginning with a story about a mother who had been adopted from the Orphan Train through the years, this anthology is a collection of stories, poems, and letters about our experiences. The history of Adoption Matters began a long, long time ago…in my mind. I noticed when people learned that you had adopted, they often wanted to know more. They were interested in the story. The why! The baby! Not that you shared. It was just something I noticed. After retiring from my 40 hours a week job, I now had time to pursue some of my interests, one being writing. I joined the Maple Grove Senior Writing group and for years wrote lots of essays. Then one day I noticed from the readings of others in our group how many of the writers had also adopted and some, like us, had biological children too. After pondering this a bit, I asked my fellow writers if anyone was interested in writing a book with our adoption stories. It was well-received and thus began our journey into Adoption Matters. Some of the writers are not from our writing group but their beautiful stories are wonderful additions. How fortunate that we have the opportunity to choose adoption or foster children. We all need love and having choices is such a blessing.
208 pages, Paperback
Published January 27, 2020
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About the author
Dianne L. Rowe
1 book2 followersDianne Rowe grew up in North Minneapolis when times were pretty innocent. Retired from the corporate world, has an AA Degree from North Hennepin Community College, lives in Maple Grove where she is a member of a Senior Writing Group. Writes essays about life as she knows it; Published in Family Digest and she just finished writing a children’s Christmas picture book. “I find there is wonderful freedom in writing,” she says.
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Displaying 1 - 3 of 3 reviews
May 30, 2020
Adoption has changed a lot over time and is a lot more open and transparent now than it has been in the past. This book is a collection of 19 stories written by parents, grandparents, grown children, and siblings of adoptees, as well as those who were adopted. This is the first anthology I've read that has so many perspectives between the covers.
The majority of the stories have happy endings, but there are a couple that have twists and turns, as life tends to do. From adoptions taking place within the same family to ones across the ocean, there is a wide array of adoption stories over many decades, but each one has touched the lives of many, both directly and in more subtle ways.
The majority of the stories have happy endings, but there are a couple that have twists and turns, as life tends to do. From adoptions taking place within the same family to ones across the ocean, there is a wide array of adoption stories over many decades, but each one has touched the lives of many, both directly and in more subtle ways.
March 26, 2023
From my column in the March 2020 Midwest book review:
From start to finish, this book is full of honest, down to earth, and candid stories of adoption. The first story by Dianne L. Rowe is about her mother who was adopted from the orphan train and although experienced a difficult time, persevered and ended up happily married. Although her life was never easy, she was a role model for her children.
Rowe also writes an article providing background for the orphan trains which ran in America from 1854 through 1929. 1929 was the onset of the Great Depression, but it was actually the settlement of the west that caused a decline in the demand for adoption.
Rowe herself was an adoptive mother, and also shares that story in the book, also.
The project took two years to complete. Rowe suggested the idea to her writing group which had several other adoptive parents. It was well-received and thus began the journey of collecting stories.
Stories about relatives finding each other after fifty years, becoming a parent after fostering a child, a story about adopting a child while in military service in Germany, South-Korean adoptions to the USA, local adoptions in Minnesota, and a story about one person learning later in childhood she was not the oldest child in the family are all included.
From start to finish, this book is full of honest, down to earth, and candid stories of adoption. The first story by Dianne L. Rowe is about her mother who was adopted from the orphan train and although experienced a difficult time, persevered and ended up happily married. Although her life was never easy, she was a role model for her children.
Rowe also writes an article providing background for the orphan trains which ran in America from 1854 through 1929. 1929 was the onset of the Great Depression, but it was actually the settlement of the west that caused a decline in the demand for adoption.
Rowe herself was an adoptive mother, and also shares that story in the book, also.
The project took two years to complete. Rowe suggested the idea to her writing group which had several other adoptive parents. It was well-received and thus began the journey of collecting stories.
Stories about relatives finding each other after fifty years, becoming a parent after fostering a child, a story about adopting a child while in military service in Germany, South-Korean adoptions to the USA, local adoptions in Minnesota, and a story about one person learning later in childhood she was not the oldest child in the family are all included.
March 16, 2020
Such a variety of stories and some unexpected situations
This anthology begins with an orphan train story. I didn't realize relatives of such people still remembered their adventures. There are some stories that are to be expected, as when people went to a church or adoption agency. One story is of a man who never thought he would be a father . . . surprise, but not one I expected. And the heart stopping stories of people meeting many years later . . . even 50 years. This book helped me realize many people are adoptive parents, and I usually don't even think about it when it seems everyone just fits in life.
This anthology begins with an orphan train story. I didn't realize relatives of such people still remembered their adventures. There are some stories that are to be expected, as when people went to a church or adoption agency. One story is of a man who never thought he would be a father . . . surprise, but not one I expected. And the heart stopping stories of people meeting many years later . . . even 50 years. This book helped me realize many people are adoptive parents, and I usually don't even think about it when it seems everyone just fits in life.
Displaying 1 - 3 of 3 reviews