Birthmarks: Transracial Adoption in Contemporary America

This book is well written and an asset to someone interested in learning about transracial adoption POLICY AND THEORY(which also implies issues of welfare reform, illegitimacy, and institutional race/classism)from W.W. II to the 1990's. The author, herself an adoptee, interviewed 22 transracial adoptees (primarily Mid West and West Coast) and has included some of their comments in the text. Personally, I was seeking more of a "Field Guide" of difficult situations that prospective transracial adoptive parents or the adoptees might encounter and HOW to engage those issues in a proactive and sensitive manner. This was an interesting read (like a graduate student's thesis about institutional racism), but not quite what I was looking for.

The power of this book is in the stories of the adoptees the author interviews. Their life stories answer some of the most pressing questions there are about transracial adoption, including their experiences with racism and their struggles to make sense of who they are. This is a book all adoptees, adoptive parents, and birth parents should read. Yet the stories are engaging and relevant for all readers interested in questions of family and identity. Patton lays bare the process of developing a sense of self in a race-conscious society. But there is more. The author lets the adoptees speak and then puts their words into a larger framework of social analysis. She also includes attention to media and policy issues about adoption and single mothers. Her perspective on the connections between welfare legislation and adoption policy are incisive and chilling. A must read!