Gathering the Missing Pieces in an Adopted Life by Kay Moore

The author's successful search for her birthfamily brought answers to questions she had asked since childhood. Many other individuals are asking the same questions. Gathering the Missing Pieces in an Adopted Life guides anyone who might have some connection to the adoption adopted individuals who wonder whether finding missing relatives is right for them; adoptive parents who struggle with how to share information with their children; and birthfamily members who wonder whether they have the right to know children from whom they were once parted. Although the book is partially autobiographical, it also includes stories of at least sixty other individuals who have some adoption connection. Although her own search, and those of many quoted, had a positive outcome, Moore also references the various challenges and pitfalls that can occur during this emotionally charged process. She helps readers examine the pros and cons of finding birthfamily members and explores the long-term outcome of several reunion experiences. For adoptive parents, the book helps explain why some adoptees must search, no matter how loved and secure they have felt growing up--an insatiable need that evades most persons who have grown up knowing their biological families. It suggests ways to answer their adoptive children's questions at age-appropriate stages and provides helps for people considering adoption. For birthparents, the book features the stories of several who have been found and how the process filled in important gaps for them as well. It shows how the sometimes lonely, staggering decisions that they made earlier impact their lives for years to come. Each chapter concludes with a handy reference on how the various members of the adoption "triad"--birthfamily, adoptees, and adopted persons--can relate to and use the information contained therein. The author contends that adoption presents lifelong challenges for all parties involved but encourages readers by enumerating a lifeline of helps available to families today as never before. Moore also gives attention to the rapidly changing laws, regulations, and expectations surrounding adoptions, and she includes a thorough listing of references, agencies, and other adoption resources.;