Full of wonderful stories that give insight into a wide variety of adoption issues, now revised in light of recent developments, The Family of Adoption is a powerful argument for the right kind of openness in adoption. Joyce Maguire Pavao uses her thirty years of experience as a family and adoption therapist to explain to adoptive parents, birthparents, adult adopted people, and extended family, as well as to those who work with children professionally the developmental stages and challenges one can expect in the life of the adopted person.
The Family of Adoption is truly the most insightful and healing book on the adoption shelf.
“We’ve long needed a book like Pavao’s, which looks at adoption as an idea and a process . . . I recommend it to all readers who are affected by adoption, and isn’t that all of us?” —Mary Pipher, author of Reviving Ophelia and The Shelter of Each Other
“A commitment to placing the best interests of the child first informs every page of this excellent study of the complex psychological and social dynamics of adoptive families.” —Publishers Weekly
“[An] insightful, informative, and at times very moving look at adoption from all sides . . . What makes this book so helpful for anyone involved in the adoption process is the author’s obvious respect for all parties, including parents, extended families, and even teachers, judges, and social workers. Instead of putting people off, [Pavao] encourages them to find new ways to empathize and cooperate, keeping the child’s best interest at the forefront.” —Diane Daniel, Boston Globe
“This very candid, honest book takes a look at infertility and the ambiguity of adoption that is often merely alluded to in other adoption publications . . . This book is a gift to anyone involved in adoption. Get it and read it more than once.” —Chosen Family Magazine