Family & Relationships : Adoption

Helping traumatized children develop a narrative about their life and the lives of people closest to them, is key to their understanding and acceptance of who they are and their past experiences. The Child's Own Story is an introduction to life story work and how this effective tool can be used to help children and young people recover from abuse and make sense of a disrupted upbringing in multiple homes or families. Explaining the concepts of attachment, separation, loss and identity, the authors use these as a context to describe how to use techniques such as family trees, wallpaper work, eco- and geno-scaling. They offer guidance on interviewing relatives and carers, and how to gain access to key documentation, including social workers' case files, legal papers, and health, registrar and police records. This sensitive, practice-focused guide to life story work is an invaluable resource for social workers, child psychotherapists, residential care staff, long-term foster carers and other professionals working with traumatized children. more...

Price: $27.95

Virtually all literature about birth parents of adopted children has focused on mothers. In this pioneering study, Gary Clapton gives us a fresh perspective: he recounts the experiences of thirty birth fathers separated from their children at birth. Discussing different notions of fatherhood, such as biological paternity, social fatherhood, sperm donorship and the 'father figure', this informative book - the first on birth fathers in adoption - brings new light to issues such as the decision to give up a child for adoption, the child's desire to find his or her birth parents, and the facilitation of contact in later life. Written in an accessible style with insights into adoption and social work practice past and present, Birth Fathers and their Adoption Experiences offers a vital new perspective on understanding the causes and consequences of adoption, and makes positive suggestions for working with those whom it affects. more...

Price: $34.95

''...written simply and coherently. ...provides an excellent guide for showing parents how to create stories that enable the child to discover new meanings: those associated with success, not failure, hope, not hopelessness.''. - Daniel A. Hughes, Clinical Psychologist, So. China, ME. ''...offers parents a supportive tool for entering their child's life in a subtle though direct manner. Parents should find that this book is one answer to their on-going question of 'What can we do?'''. - Gregory C. Keck, Founder and Director of the Attachment and Bonding Center of Ohio, Cleveland, OH. Children whose early development has been damaged by abuse or neglect are notoriously difficult to reach. Through many years' therapeutic work with adopted children and their families, the Family Attachment Center of Minnesota has developed an exciting and innovative technique which uses stories as the main mode for helping parents to communicate and connect with their troubled children. Connecting with Kids through Stories is an accessible guide to Family Attachment Narrative Therapy for the parents of adopted or fostered children, and for the professionals who work with them. Providing a thorough theoretical grounding, and detailed information on therapeutic techniques and how to assess progress, the book shows parents how to create their own therapeutic stories to promote increased attachment and improved behavior in their child. The authors describe how different kinds of narratives can help with specific difficulties and illustrate their techniques with the story of a fictional family who develop their own narratives to help their adopted child heal. more...

Price: $19.95

Includes information on the Adoption and Safe Families Act, a federal law created to encourage the adoption of foster children. This encyclopedia also includes information on other adoption issues such as laws concerning adoptions by gays and lesbians, tax issues, school and adopted children, birthfather rights, transracial adoptions, and more. more...

Price: $75.00

''Will you take her?'' she asks. When Beth Nonte Russell travels to China to help her friend Alex adopt a baby girl from an orphanage there, she thinks it will be an adventure, a chance to see the world. But her friend, who had prepared for the adoption for many months, panics soon after being presented with the frail baby, and the situation develops into one of the greatest challenges of Russell's life. more...

Price: $11.99