Tell Your Adoption Story

Every adoption is its own unique story. How will you choose to record your child's history and spread the word about this great way to make a family? You can write a novel, an essay, a memoir, or sum it all up in a colorful lifebook full of pictures, maps, height charts, and other special family memories. But getting your thoughts together isn't always as easy as you would think, so we've created this special Tell Your Adoption Story page. Below you'll find articles from our archives on how to bring your experience to life and capture your journey. And we've also added a link to the AF online bookstore, where you'll find some of our favorite adoption stories, along with book reviews by our experts.

More Ways to Tell Your Story
Adoption Blogging
Adoption Scrapbooking

ADOPTIVE PARENTS' WRITING
	We Are All Storytellers by Janis Cooke Newman How to write an adoption memoir that's rich in feeling, images, and detail.
	Once Upon a Time by Lee Tobin McClain, Ph.D. Many parents are putting their adoption stories in writing. Whether you publish or not, here's how to create a moving memoir.
	Writing Through the Wait by Lee Tobin McClain, Ph.D. On the long journey to adoption, a journal can record the milestones and detours, as well as your first rush of love for your child.
	Journaling for Teens by Lee Tobin McClain, Ph.D. Writing a journal is a great way to build a stronger sense of self.
	Meet a Family Online by Lois Gilman Internet diaries can take you inside the adoption experience, warts, joys, and all.
LIFEBOOKS, SCRAPBOOKS, AND PERSONALIZED STORYBOOKS
	Lifebook Lessons AF's panel of five lifebook experts answer the most frequently asked questions, offering advice on the topics every lifebook should address, how to deal with difficult information, and how to get started on this important project.
	A Tale to Treasure by Lisa Milbrand Follow these pointers to create a personalized picture book that’s guaranteed to become your child’s favorite bedtime read.
	Capturing Your Child's Journey Through Life by Nancy Thalia Reynolds Lifebooks were developed by social workers in the 1970s to help children moving through the foster care system by creating a permanent record of a child's history. The value of such a record for adopted children is clear.
	Babies and Birthmoms and Bellies, Oh My! by Elizabeth Di Grazia When our children began to ask questions, we found answers in personalized adoption storybooks.
	A Link to the Past by Myra Alperson An adoption scrapbook lets parents and children create a sense of history and of belonging.
	Your Baby's Memory Book by Carrie Krueger Create a simple story for your young child to learn and grow with.
	Through a Child's Eyes by Joni Mantell, LCSW By six years old, a child is ready to explore her story at a deeper level. Creating her own lifebook will help your child express her feelings.
	A Bridge to Your Child's Beginnings by Cindy Probst In an excerpt from her book, Probst talks about why lifebooks, long treasured by foster adopters, make sense for all adoptive families.
	Telling Your Family's Story
	AF Readers Review: Fill-in-the-blank Lifebooks
	AF Readers Review: Customized Photo Storybook options
BOOKS FROM THE AF BOOKSTORE: MEMOIRS
	Like Family: Growing Up in Other People's Houses—A Memoir by Paula McLain; reviewed by Katy Robinson
	The Language of Blood: A Memoir by Jane Jeong Trenka; reviewed by Deborah Johnson
	In Their Own Voices: Transracial Adoptees Tell Their Stories by Rita J. Simon and Rhonda M. Roorda
	Secret Thoughts of an Adoptive Mother by Jana Wolff; book excerpt
	The Kid: An Adoption Story by Dan Savage; reviewed by Gail Steinberg, Beth Hall, and Natasha Moullen
	The Velveteen Father by Jesse Green; reviewed by Gail Steinberg, Beth Hall, and Natasha Moullen
	The Exact Same Moon: Fifty Acres and a Family by Jeanne Marie Laskas; reviewed by Eliza Thomas
	Meeting Sophie: A Memoir of Adoption by Nancy McCabe; reviewed by Eliza Thomas
	The Waiting Child by Cindy Champnella; reviewed by Carrie Krueger
	The Russian Word for Snow: An Adoption Story by Janis Cooke Newman; reviewed by Lily Heyen-Withrow
BOOKS FROM THE AF BOOKSTORE: LIFEBOOK TEMPLATES AND RESOURCES
	A Birthparent's Book of Memories by Brenda Romanchik; reviewed by Cindy Probst
	Creating a Treasure for the Adopted Child by Beth O'Malley; reviewed by Cindy Probst
	Adorable Adoptees Memory Book: A Dream Come True by Jessica Rose, Nicole Dankert and Sarah Dankert; reviewed by Cindy Probst
	Adoption Lifebook: A Bridge To Your Child's Beginnings by Cindy Probst; reviewed by Amy Klatzkin
	This is me! Memories to Gather and Keep by Gloria Finkbeiner; reviewed by Cindy Probst