Informative read on horrifying conditions in orphanages in the early 1900's.
919303
A family secret told through two intertwined heroines. The story cuts well between past and present, with heartbreaking details of life in an orphanage. The ending felt contrived and unsatisfying.
902460
A very interesting look into the tragic story of these children's life's.  Having come from an extremely abusive home life, it was interesting and little scary to see how similar my own childhood was and how frightening close to crossing the line my own mother had come.
759469
Extremely well-written and very informative.  It was heartbreaking to feel what both the child and the parents went through due to the parents' obsessive need to hoard.
1469153
made me aware of what goes on in the orphanages.  It takes special people to help the children
1254255
12 Years a Slave is interesting and enlightening.  I was unable to read long passages at one time which made for slow reading although there were not that many pages.  It is heart breaking to  hear of humans being treated worse than animals.  Makes me think if the owners had been more compassionate it would have resulted in more efficient work.  It never hurts to have some musical talent...
2322234
Interesting story.  I was not aware of the orphan trains.  These particular kids had a rough childhood but fortunately landed with passionate and caring people.  Others were not so lucky.  God bless those that cared.
4888255
I loved this book as it gave a good look at how orphans were viewed and helped (if you want to call it as helped) during this time period.  God says we should help and take care of widows & orphans.  How are we doing today? Something to think about.
3274659
If you are an adoptee, or child of an adoptee that was relinquished during this time period, then this book is especially pertinent. The author gives a quick overview of the changing attitudes about adoption from the Victorian era to the time of publication, and then delves into a very dark side of adoption - baby racketeering - that still impacts the majority of adoptees, their children, and relinquishing parents today.

FYI: Many of your acquaintances, and friends, will be very skeptical when you talk to them about this book, as it just doesn't seem possible that such disregard for the welfare of the relinquished child could go on for so long, and, with government collusion, or willful ignorance, in 48 / 50 States.  However, it is historical fact, but as usual, we are rarely taught anything but the sanitized version of history in school.
2939017
I found this book very informative yet disturbing.  It was especially of interest to me as I had been a foster home/adoption home finder in the 1960's.  Our standard were quite high and not that long after Georgia's disgusting behavior.
2925391
Very informative..........I was unaware of some of the horrible things things these people suffered through.
790266
Very sweet story. The childhood references to to life in the orphanage were shockingly sad and almost hard to read.
4889425
I have been fond of what Covenant House does for a few years and wanted to get some further insight as I know they work with human trafficking victims regularly. This helped me understand a lot more about homelessness with teenagers and how Covenant House helps house, mentor, educate, and giv job opportunities to the many children and young adults who have had tough lives on the streets.

This book gives accounts of a few kids who have since thrived from their days at Covenant House. Some were foster kids, others were abandoned by their parents or were adopted at some point, a few were abused in some way or witnessed abuse in their homes. It was nice to see how there is hope for those who have had bad situations.
3166952
enjoyed reading this book even though it was disturbing to realize the things we don't come across in our lives Children are at the mercy of adults and often that is horrifying. Well written
2423447
What a wonderful account on just a few of the horrors that God's chosen people have endured. A wonderful read.
978929
While is was such a sad story most of the way through, I liked the ending. And to know there were places like this where children were exploited is horrifying. It was a good read
1065950
I knew little about the adoption p.rocess and the horrors in Tennessee for so many years. I learned a lot about the awful eras where this continued with no discourse due to greed and power. Couldn't Put it down.
4469151
This is an interesting read.  This puts into prospective the horrible conditions of the insane in the 1900's, the daily fight of women to survive in a world where men were considered men and women considered weak.  Women had hardly any rights if any and their struggles to live and work in a mans world was hard.
Nellie Bly had the courage to go under cover in dire circumstances to Bellvue Hospital and then to Blackwell Island.  She incriminated herself to go undercover to show the world the cruelty the poor unfortunates were treated and the endurance she showed for the ten days she was there.
Come, go back to the early days and read for yourself these horrors and you will want to learn more even though this book is short