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Heather Cranmer (2721 KP) created a post

Mar 25, 2022

How did Julie Connor, Author's children's picture book THE BABY WITH THREE FAMILIES, TWO COUNTRIES, AND ONE PROMISE: AN INTERNATIONAL ADOPTION STORY come to be? Learn about the interesting story behind it in a fascinating guest post on my blog, and enter the #giveaway for a chance to win a signed copy of the book - 3 winners!

https://alltheupsandowns.blogspot.com/2022/03/book-blog-tour-and-giveaway-baby-with.html

**BOOK SYNOPSIS**
The Baby with Three Families, Two Countries, and One Promise is a children’s book designed to be read by parents to a child adopted from a foreign country. The story is first recounted from the perspective of the parents in the USA, who are very sad not to be able to have a child. The perspective then switches to that of the biological mother, who realizes that she does not have the wherewithal to raise a child. She makes the difficult decision to give up her baby. Next readers learn about a foreign adoption agency, to which the biological mother surrenders her child. The adoption agency identifies foster parents to take care of the baby temporarily. The foster parents give the baby a temporary name.

The parents in the USA begin researching international adoption possibilities and connect with the foreign adoption agency. The parents begin the adoption process and have to go to a school to learn how to be adoptive parents. When the foreign adoption agency matches the USA parents with the baby, the USA parents fly to the foreign country, where they meet the baby and the foster parents at the adoption agency. They find out that the temporary name given to the baby by his foster parents is one of the names they have selected for the baby. Their last requirement in the foreign country is to secure a visa for the baby from the U.S. Embassy.

With the baby’s visa in hand, the parents and baby return to the United States, where they are joyously greeted by their dog, their friends, and the baby’s new grandparents. When the parents tuck their baby in at night, they tell him his story—that he has three families, two countries, and a promise for the future to visit the country of his birth when he is older.

Kudos Comment

Ali A (78 KP) rated Sync in Books

May 12, 2024

Sync

Ellen Hopkins | 2024 | Young Adult (YA)

10.0

(1 Ratings)

Book Rating

Trigger Warnings: Child abuse, child neglect, homelessness, mention of drug use, rape, suicide, homophobia, prison/juvie

Twins Storm and Lake have always been in sync growing up - until they get separated within the foster care system. Storm’s been through juvie but his current foster dad and his girlfriend are helping him find a normal life again - until an incident makes him lose control again. Lake likes girls, but her bible loving foster parents would immediately kick her out if they find out - so she and her foster sibling, Parker, must keep their relationship secret. Both twins have rough patches ahead and both fight to come out on the other side.

Sooo, I’ve never read an Ellen Hopkins book - at least that I can remember anyway. I did NOT keep track of books I read until I was in my late 20’s… That being said, I feel like I would remember the emotional damage that probably would have been done with her books, especially with how I feel after finishing this one.

Hopkins didn’t shy away from the hard topics. Doing so allowed me to feel every emotion alongside the twins as they were. I’ve recently really gotten into novel-in-verse books and it absolutely makes me understand how poetry can really hit your gut with just so few words; Hopkins didn’t have to go into detail about what things looked like for you to understand what was going on.

The ending was bittersweet because I didn’t want it to be over, but at the same time, Hopkins finished it beautifully without needing the words. God, this book is going to stay with me for quite some time. I’m going to think of Storm and Lake and hope they’re doing okay.

Overall, this book will grab your heart and twist it tight, absolutely leaving an imprint when it finally releases you on the last page. Even though it’s a 400+ page novel, it reads quickly and one could probably finish it in one setting. The only reason I hadn’t was because I started it super late at night and then had plans the following morning.

*Thank you Nancy Paulsen Books and BookishFirst for an advance copy of this book in exchange for an honest review

Kudos

Alison Pink (7 KP) rated Bodily Harm (David Sloane, #3) in Books

Jan 15, 2018

This is the second book I've read that was written by Robert Dugoni. I have to admit at first I wasn't a big fan of this book, but after getting about 50 pages in, the book did begin to pick up the pace a bit. Once the plot hit it's stride, it moved at breakneck speed with barely a second to let the reader catch his/her breath! (Just the way I like it!) So if you can forgive a slow start the payoff in the end is well worth it.
I also like the main character in Dugoni's books...David Sloane. He is a slightly misunderstood, foster care system raised, misfit attorney. But he is very easy to like, even if he does tend to be a bit lucky in verdicts & lost witnesses turning up at the last minute. You can't help but feel for him & want him to win.

Kudos

Kim Pook (101 KP) rated Case 39 (2010) in Movies

Dec 13, 2020

Case 39 (2010)

2010 | Horror, Mystery

7.0

(7 Ratings)

Movie Rating

Emily - a social worker - is assigned to a young girl called lily due to suspected neglect. She goes to the family's House who appear to be very strange, the girl doesn't speak and the father refuses to speak directly to Emily and instead glares at her which she finds very unsettling. She reports this back to her boss who just brushes it off.
The next day Emily is able to speak to lily alone, who tells her that she overheard her parents talking about sending her to hell. Emily makes it her mission to try and save lily from her parents, and gives her her phone number telling her to call if ever she gets scared. Sure enough Lily calls her that evening asking for help before passing out. Emily racess to her house only to find lily's parents doing the most unspeakable thing to her (I won't say what it was but it definitely shocked me to the core). Thankfully lily's parents are arrested and lily is put into Foster care, eventually Emily decides to take lily into her own care until they can find her a permanent Foster family.
Things seem to be going well, until a 10 year old boy kills his parents after receiving a mysterious phone call from Emily's House with a man's voice.......... It isn't long before we discover that something is off with lily and it isn't good. This child is in fact pure evil!
Before this movie I wasn't sure if I could imagine Renee zellwegger in a more serious role than Bridget Jones but I was wrong, she played this role brilliantly and the role of lily was spot on as well, that girl was proper creepy. For a 2009 movie, some scenes did look rather dated. For example the scene at the beach didn't look very believable. The movie was entertaining enough to keep me interested though, right to the end.