I was recently gifted a copy of an incredible dual memoir and new release, Love & Genetics. Once finally unearthed from my seemingly bottomless to-be-read stack, I devoured it in mere days. I found the joint authors’ journey captivating and long-lingering; their story struck & stuck with me in a way I find rare for nonfiction.
As an adoptive parent, this candid chronicle of a search for and (spoiler alert!) ultimate reunion of birth-family was an inspiration. One day I pray our son might have a similar tale to tell and an overabundance of love via a broad patchwork quilt of family, like this one.
I’ve shared our own road to adoption here in detail, but very little about how adoption also shaped my extended family, growing up… quests for reunification are not always fruitful nor positive. In recent years I’ve watched as two cousins reunited with their birth families– one sibling after an extensive, deliberate quest with a hired PI, the other the unintended result of a “just for fun” genetic heritage test. My grandmother similarly reunited with a daughter she placed for adoption at infancy, though their reunification was complicated at best. Most of Husband’s aunts & uncles were also adopted, and most recently our son connected to a second cousin as the result of now-common DNA testing.
Back to the book, I especially appreciated the multi-vantage narrative and how the various perspectives provided a faceted glimpse at the emotionally complex and nuanced process of reunification, redefinition, and expansion of Family. The secondary story of surrogacy is such a beautiful illustration of the fruit of that kaleidoscope of familial love! I am certain this generously documented true story will be a blessing to many similarly assembled families.
Some additional, more light-hearted titles I’ve recently enjoyed:
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