My Overthinking

Philly Area mom, Life forever changed by adoption

An Adoption Folk Story – Sweet Moon Baby – Giveaway

Despite the busyness of filling backpacks and nesting (Oh, I’ve been nesting), I’ve been thinking a lot lately about birth families–the posting online of a baby found, a journalist and adoptive mom’s retelling of her experience of finding a little one, the posting I read of a mother who regretted leaving her child and hasn’t slept well since. A lot to consider. And, sometimes, it’s hard to consider. And, frankly, I hope I never “feel done” considering.

I conjure up images. I don’t really want to do this. I know I’m creating a story from the skeletal pieces of a story we have. But, for some reason, the images come. And, maybe I should just not fight them and let them come and morph as time passes.

I know I’m not the only adoptive mommy who has felt this way.

When one adoptive mommy faced the fact that her daughter’s whole first year of life would forever be a mystery for her as a mommy and for her daughter, she created a story of her own, a fairytale, to inspire her daughter’s imagination. That story about a perfect baby girl’s journey down the Pearl River to her forever family struck such a chord with her little girl that she shared her story for everyone–a brave step I wouldn’t be able to take. Karen Henry Clark took her version of an adoption folktale and gave us all Sweet Moon Baby. Using beloved items in her daughter’s life, she tells the tale of a Chinese man and woman who release their baby girl because they cannot care for her as they would want. She floats in a basket over the river guided by a turtle, a peacock, a monkey, a panda, and even some fish until she is welcomed into the arms of her new parents on the other side of the river.

The images. The illustrations are perfect, like I-need-two-copies-so-I-have-one-to-read-and-one-to-cut-up-and-hang-on-my-wall perfect. The final illustration = the perfect wordless ending. The little girl no longer a baby, sleeping with a smile while snuggling her stuffed panda with a goldfish and peacock feather on her night stand and stuffed monkey and turtle by her feet. The sweet goodnight tale for this little girl.

Some families have fallen in love with the story. But, some critics have hit this book hard — It’s confusing. It’s too scary that the birthparents sent their baby off in a basket into the river. It will lead to too many questions. I’m uneasy with all the fantasy. One adoption therapist even sent the book back to the author saying she couldn’t even display it because “it lacks plain honesty” and adopted children need facts, only facts.

Really? If that were true, we wouldn’t be able to read any adoption related kids’ books. None of them are just like her story. The only story factual for her is her story, the one God wrote for her life. And, there are no children’s books with her story.

So, I have read books with kangaroos and fox, books that tell about two Chinese babies going home together and becoming sisters forever, a single mother bringing home her baby, families adopting healthy baby girls all from the same orphanage, and babies adopted domestically. None of them are factual–for Lydia. But, they make “adoption” not a word that is whispered but something we talk about freely.

Sweet Moon Baby is Karen Henry Clark’s dream of a history for her child. And, you know what, some of those reviewers got it right.

It is confusing–adoption can be. It is a little bit scary that the baby was sent off alone–abandonment is sad and scary. And, it did lead to a lot of questions from my older children, questions that led to some really good conversation about why Lydia’s birth parents may have made choice they did. It’s not true, not true at all. It’s a fairy tale of sorts Karen Henry Clark used to encourage her daughter–and Chinese daughters adopted into Western homes all over–to keep wondering and keep talking.

And, I guess it serves to encourage adoptive mommies to keep wondering too.

_________________________________
Wanna see for yourself?
I’ve got a copy to giveaway – and not just any copy – but an autographed copy. Despite the fact that I’m really tempted to keep two copies for that whole hang-the-pages-up-on-the-wall thing, I’m sharing.
To enter, leave a comment on this post with why you’d like to win or what interests you about this book or something like that.
If you want a second entry, share a link to this giveaway on Facebook and leave me a second comment here telling me you did. It’s nice to share, you know.
I won’t make you become a follower here to enter. But, it would be nice. And, I know you all are nice.
Enter before Sunday, September 4th at 10pm EST. I’ll choose a winner randomly using random.org after that. And expect an email from me asking what you think of the book, okay?

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Comments

  3. Wow. How very timely. My adopted daughter (also adopted from China) just started kindergarten and is full of questions. Ones I have no answers for. We have several stories we like to read. My favorite (which is what I thought your link to the story of the kangaroo would be) is Lambaroo. A great book. In fact, I am tearing up just writing the title. I have never made it through that book dry-eyed.

    Another is I Love You More. So sweet. About mother animals’ love for their babies. The end gets me every time as well.

    The Red Blanket. It is one of my daughter’s current favorites. I am a single mom (as is the woman in the book) and my daughter likes me to replace the name written in the story with her names… both Chinese and England.

    I am aware that the time is now coming near when the deeper questions will be coming more frequently. As a teacher, I am so aware of how the use of word pictures helps so much to convey a concept or idea that might otherwise be too difficult. It sounds like this book would be a great tool to discuss her first year.. her missing year.. with my daughter.

    I would love to share this post on Facebook and am lookng forward to being a follower.
    I like what you write and how you write.

    Nice to meet you. <3

  4. Oh wow, I would LOVE to win this book and there are just so many reasons why! It sounds amazing. Back in 2006 I was hit hard with wanting to adopt, a bit out of the blue and in the night … and wanting to write a children’s book much like what this sounds like–funny, I had no connection with adoption at that time but somehow seeds that had been planted had started to grow. I never did start writing that book … but it began a journey that I am still traveling on!
    Thanks for being so giving and for the fun give-away!

  5. OK. I’m back. :)
    Joined your blog and look forward to getting updates. Also posted on FB. There is a FB link on my website.
    Nite!

  7. I’ve been collecting children’s books about adoption for 3 years while we’ve been waiting I would love to have this one too.

  8. FYI, I realized that I had posted as 2 different log ins. Mom2Isabel and Laureen are the same.
    BTW, thank you for your kind comment on my blog.

  9. I’d love to win this book because, like you said, it’s another avenue to talk about adoption. And if I can only read my daughter books of fact, boy I am in trouble. We had better throw the whole darn fiction section out of the library! Well, and I guess we can’t watch Tangled or Annie anymore…those aren’t her adoption stories either. And what will my little one do if she can’t belt out “Tomorrow” or pretend she’s Carol Burnett singing “Little Girls”? Pooey to the naysayers! Go rain on your own parade. I would love that book, and if I don’t win it, I’ll buy it.

  10. This book is beautifully illustrated! Would love to add it to our collection of books on adoption that we read often for our 2.
    Jody

  12. Oh how I would LOVE to win this!!! I have heard about that book. I so believe that the concept of adoption should be talked about early. what better way then to read a story. Its hard to find good books that I would want to read to my babies about it. I have a secret desire to one day write a children’s book about this process. To celebrate it, to open dialogue about it. Love Love Love this. I posted this link on my Facebook too!
    ~Sis
    http://adoption-thecrookedroad.blogspot.com

  13. Oh it sounds like such a wonderful book! I owuld love to win a copy to read to my sweet girls –
    Thanks for the chance to win!
    Sara :)

  14. I would love to win too. Sadly, I have no adoption books for kids (yet) in our home library!

  15. I would love to have this for the girls! Jake will want to read it too and I can already hear all his questions :)
    Nicole

  16. I would LOVE to have this in our adoption book collection. We love reading books about adoption, especially Mylee.

  18. I would love to share this story with my soon to be adopted daughter. It will be a great conversation story for us. kelleykjag at yahoo dot com

  19. I’d love to add this book to my collection of adoption related books for my Lydia.

  21. I would love to add this book to my collection! We hope to adopt some day, so this one would be perfect!
    Sabrina.Vaccaro at hotmail dot com

  23. I would love to win a copy of this book! My daughter Rachel was adopted from China when she was 8 months old (she’s 7 yrs. old now). This book would be an excellent addition to the books about China adoption that we already have. She is a very inquisitive child who is eager to learn everything. She has had a lot adoption-related questions about her adoption and about her “China Mommy” since before she was even 2 years old. We have always been open and honest and told her what we know. The one thing I struggle with is the word “abandoned”. Every time I read this word, it just rips my heart out. Maybe this book would help me explain this in kid-friendly terms. Thanks for the chance to win a copy.

    nancyecdavis AT bellsouth DOT net

  25. we are currently awaiting domestic infant placement and should start a little library at the very least for our bio kids to understand..

    heinzmom at hotmail dot com
    sometimesuwin.blogspot.com

  28. This sounds like a tender and fascinating story and I’d love to see the illustrations close up.

    Nancy
    allibrary (at) aol (dot) com

  31. Hmmmm, let me see, why would I want to win?
    1. I LOVE children’s books.
    2. I love children’s books about adoption.
    3. Um….I have a collection of children’s books autographed by the authors- something I really treasure!
    4. Cooper would love it (just sayin’) ;)
    5. If you recommend it, I know it’s worth checking out!
    6. ALL OF THE ABOVE. :)

    I’ll totally post it on FB! :)

  32. Hi Kelly!

    i would love to win this book so that i could add it to our adoption library. We read all kinds of great stories about adoption to our girls, and it helps them understand some of the ins and outs of why we adopted, and why they were put up for adoption. We are getting to the age with our middle one, that she wants to find her “China Mom and Dad” and wants to have roots.
    i need all the help i can get with these questions!
    Thank you!
    Alycia
    p.s. i am now following you… (thought i already was!)

  34. I would like to win this because I know a few people who adopted (I admire them and hope to follow in their footsteps) and I am also in school to be a teacher and this would be a very good book to have in my classroom!
    jadavis42@tntech.edu

  36. Obviously, it is too late to win a copy. However, I will share anyways!

    This is the first book I bought after deciding to adopt a daughter from China. We have 3 beautiful biological children, but have room and love for more and God led us to China. Shortly after the paperwork started, I saw this book in a local shop and purchased it. I read it to my 7, 5, and 3 year olds. And my 7 year old said this:

    “Mom, this is like Moses. I know some people would be scared, or angry because the baby was sent away. But God carried Moses down the Nile. And God will carry our baby right to us, right?”

    Yes. Yes He will. And now as we wait only on our travel approval, we talk about where our daughter in on the river and how God will put her into our arms at the perfect moment.

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