Book #8: The Lost Daughters of China

Title: The Lost Daughters of China: Adopted Girls, Their Journey to America, and the Search for a Missing Past
Author: Karin Evans

In 1997, Karin Evans, a journalist in her forties, and her husband Mark traveled to China to adopt Kelly, a baby girl. Several years later, the family returned to adopt Franny, a toddler. In The Lost Daughters of China, Evans talks about her preparation for the journey (the memoir part), the history of adoption in China (the historical part), and the story of how Kelly and Franny became integrated into the family and into life in America (the adoption-how-to/parenting part). In the 2008 update, Kelly and Franny were entering adolescence and beginning to ask more questions about their pasts.

I whipped through The Lost Daughters of China in a few hours, engrossed in the story of Karin and her girls, and eager to see how they went from strangers to family. I was also interested in following the technical story of Karin's adoption process: the paperwork, the angst that comes with waiting, the eager anticipation Karin and Mark felt on their way to meet their daughters, and the transitions after the papers were signed and the four became a family.