"Before We Were Yours" by Lisa Wingate is a heart-wrenching tale based on the true story of the Tennessee Children's Home Society, run by Georgia Tann. The novel follows the lives of siblings who are kidnapped from their home on a riverboat and forced into the cruel world of the orphanage where they face abuse and separation. The story alternates between the past and present, weaving together the historical horrors of child trafficking with a modern-day exploration of family secrets and scandals. The writing style is described as simple yet touching, with short chapters that seamlessly transition between different time periods, keeping readers engrossed in the narrative.
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Content warnings for child kidnapping, abuse, and historical trauma related to adoption scandals.
From The Publisher:
THE BLOCKBUSTER HIT-Over two million copies sold! A New York Times, USA Today, Wall Street Journal, and Publishers Weekly Bestseller
Look for Lisa Wingate's powerful new historical novel, The Book of Lost Friends, available now!
"Poignant, engrossing."-People
"Lisa Wingate takes an almost unthinkable chapter in our nation's history and weaves a tale of enduring power."-Paula McLain
Memphis, 1939. Twelve-year-old Rill Foss and her four younger siblings live a magical life aboard their family's Mississippi River shantyboat. But when their father must rush their mother to the hospital one stormy night, Rill is left in charge-until strangers arrive in force. Wrenched from all that is familiar and thrown into a Tennessee Children's Home Society orphanage, the Foss children are assured that they will soon be returned to their parents-but they quickly realize the dark truth. At the mercy of the facility's cruel director, Rill fights to keep her sisters and brother together in a world of danger and uncertainty.
Aiken, South Carolina, present day. Born into wealth and privilege, Avery Stafford seems to have it all: a successful career as a federal prosecutor, a handsome fiancé, and a lavish wedding on the horizon. But when Avery returns home to help her father weather a health crisis, a chance encounter leaves her with uncomfortable questions and compels her to take a journey through her family's long-hidden history, on a path that will ultimately lead either to devastation or to redemption.
Based on one of America's most notorious real-life scandals-in which Georgia Tann, director of a Memphis-based adoption organization, kidnapped and sold poor children to wealthy families all over the country-Lisa Wingate's riveting, wrenching, and ultimately uplifting tale reminds us how, even though the paths we take can lead to many places, the heart never forgets where we belong.
Publishers Weekly's #3 Longest-Running Bestseller of 2017
Winner of the Southern Book Prize
If All Arkansas Read the Same Book Selection
Ratings (74)
Incredible (25) | |
Loved It (30) | |
Liked It (15) | |
It Was OK (3) | |
Did Not Like (1) |
Reader Stats (122):
Read It (78) | |
Want To Read (31) | |
Did Not Finish (1) | |
Not Interested (12) |
3 comment(s)
It is so terrible what those children went through in this novel! This is an amazing story that really makes you think and has you wondering what will happen and how it all connects! I'm glad that it became a happy ending for the sisters!
SUCH a good read! I really enjoyed it and it's made me start looking more into that situation.
I liked half of this book. I don't know why Historical Fiction go to the future to have a grand child discover the past, but I just don't care about them and how they feel about it. We as readers, already understand the path the story takes and I don't know why they treat it as a mystery. I had the same issue with the Crown as it also had a relative find put about the past of her embroidery master grand mother.
For what was set in the past, I thought the emotion and fear were written very well. Even the resignation at the end of the book was just so poignant. Then we go to Avery and its just so dry since we see her life and how her father's reputation could be ruined if they find out they were river folk descendants. The perspectives just aren't balanced in terms of stakes and interest.
What can you read after
Before We Were Yours?
About the Author:
Lisa Wingate is a former journalist, an inspirational speaker, and the author of numerous novels, including the #1 New York Times bestseller Before We Were Yours, which has sold more than 2.2 million copies. The co-author, with Judy Christie, of the nonfiction book, Before…
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