"Former Nashvillian Kay Moore has written a book, Gathering the Missing Pieces in an Adopted Life, that has to rank at the top in authenticity and sensitivity on a complex subject.. . . Her search for her origins led her to other adoptees, adoptive parents, and birth families, and she discovered that her feelings were the shared legacy of people everywhere who want the whole truth about who they are. In her book, she shares some of these stories along with the fascinating account of her own journey into her past, which has all the drama and mystery of a novel." -- Nashville Banner, February 10, 1995
"Gathering the Missing Pieces in an Adopted Life by Kay Moore is a welcome and long overdue addition to Christian literature. Through its pages, she creatively weaves other adoption stories together with her own to present an honest and realistic look at the lifelong challenges of families touched by adoption." -- Jewel Among Jewels adoption newsletter, Summer 1995
"Hers is a moving story and must reading for anyone involved in adoption as an adoptee, adoptive parent, birth parent, or other near relative of an adoptee. The reason I found the book so fascinating was its ability to remind me of how extremely important it is for each of us to learn to feel or empathize with those whose struggles in life are different from ours." -- Holmes Road Church of Christ Heartbeat, Nashville, TN, February 1995
"I found it to be well written, informative, and heartfelt. . . . One emotion after another takes hold of the reader's thought and heart in such a way as to give the reader an insightful and intimate view into the feelings of all parties involved.. . . For this reason alone, it is a valuable resource for anyone considering an adoption search." -- The Christian Index, Georgia, August 10, 1995
"If adoption has ever been or may be a part of your life or the life of anyone close to you, you need to read Gathering the Missing Pieces in an Adopted Life. This book . . . will be a valuable, readable resource for all those related. -- "The Evangel, First Baptist Church, Nashville, TN
"Seldom does a writer with these credentials have such a gripping personal story to tell.. . . She tackles questions head-on in one of the most insightful, heartfelt accounts in print of the trails and triumphs of adoption." -- Baptist New Mexican, April 1995
"She shares tips that work for adoption-related issues and a list of groups, agencies, books and other resources. most important, she helps you discover your God-given heritage in full." -- The Baptist Standard Texas
"She weaves the personal journey of what she experienced in her search for her birth parents into a highly readable manual on the varied faces of adoption. Moore focuses on the feelings of everyone involved--the birth mother and father and their families, the family that adopted the child, and the adoptee with the whole range of emotions that many people who've been adopted deal with.. . . She sensitively describes the potential feelings of everyone involved and gives illustrations of persons who have had both positive and negative experiences. As an adoptive mother I highly recommend the book." -- Provident Book Finder, March/April/May 1996
"While Moore's search has been a model for the best-case scenario, through her book, Gathering the Missing Pieces in an Adopted Life, she has tried to give others looking for their birth parents a way to deal with potential obstacles." -- The Garland, Texas News, May 18, 1995
Product Description
The author's successful search for her birthfamily brought answers to questions she had asked since childhood. Many other individuals are asking the same questions. Gathering the Missing Pieces in an Adopted Life guides anyone who might have some connection to the adoption process: adopted individuals who wonder whether finding missing relatives is right for them; adoptive parents who struggle with how to share information with their children; and birthfamily members who wonder whether they have the right to know children from whom they were once parted.
Although the book is partially autobiographical, it also includes stories of at least sixty other individuals who have some adoption connection. Although her own search, and those of many quoted, had a positive outcome, Moore also references the various challenges and pitfalls that can occur during this emotionally charged process. She helps readers examine the pros and cons of finding birthfamily members and explores the long-term outcome of several reunion experiences.
For adoptive parents, the book helps explain why some adoptees must search, no matter how loved and secure they have felt growing up--an insatiable need that evades most persons who have grown up knowing their biological families. It suggests ways to answer their adoptive children's questions at age-appropriate stages and provides helps for people considering adoption. For birthparents, the book features the stories of several who have been found and how the process filled in important gaps for them as well. It shows how the sometimes lonely, staggering decisions that they made earlier impact their lives for years to come.
Each chapter concludes with a handy reference on how the various members of the adoption "triad"--birthfamily, adoptees, and adopted persons--can relate to and use the information contained therein. The author contends that adoption presents lifelong challenges for all parties involved but encourages readers by enumerating a lifeline of helps available to families today as never before.
Moore also gives attention to the rapidly changing laws, regulations, and expectations surrounding adoptions, and she includes a thorough listing of references, agencies, and other adoption resources.;
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