Becoming a Mother: Reflections on Adoptive Parenthood: 2018

Becoming a Mother is an exploration of the complexity of adoption from the perspective of an adoptive parent. It draws on a combination of seminal and modern texts and personal memoir to present a unique view of what it means to be an adoptive parent in Ireland today. The book has a particular focus on Intercountry adoptive parenting as well as looking at adoption from the other viewpoints: adopted person and birth parent. A dearth of literature exploring adoption exists on Irish bookshelves. This book seeks to fill that void by exploring issues around the topic of adoption: the secrecy and silence that still pervades adoption, the primal desire to parent that drives adoptive parenting, the tumultuousness of search and reunion and more. There are shared experiences and tips on bonding with the adopted child as well as a look at parenthood for the adopted person.

The intended audience is the estimated 10% of the Irish population connected to adoption in some way, which includes seven thousand children resident in Ireland, adopted from abroad. Also, the book will be suitable for inclusion on reading lists for Barnardos post adoption service, CORAM (British adoption and fostering) as well as counselling/psychotherapy colleges such IICP, PCI and Dublin city college.