Twice the Family, A Memoir of Love, Loss and Sisterhood (2025), Twice a Daughter: A Search for Identity, Family and Belonging (2021), and Belonging Matters: Conversations on Adoption, Family & Kinship (2023)
Twice the Family, A Memoir of Love, Loss and Sisterhood is a coming-of-age memoir, set in Chicago’s western suburbs between the 1960s and ‘80s, adopted twins Julie and Jenny provide their parents with an instant family. Their sisterly bond holds tight as the two strive for identity, individuality, and belonging. But as Julie’s parents continue adding children to the family, some painful and tragic experiences test family values, parental relationships, and sibling bonds. Faced with these hurdles, Julie questions everything—who she is, how she fits in, her adoption circumstances, her faith, and her idea of family. But the life her parents have constructed is not one she wants for herself—and as she matures, she recognizes how the experiences that formed her have provided her a road map for the person and mother she wants to be.
Twice a Daughter: A Search for Identity, Family and Belonging
Julie is adopted. She is also a twin. Because their adoption was closed, she and her sister lack both a health history and their adoption papers―which becomes an issue for Julie when, at forty-eight years old, she finds herself facing several serious health issues. Julie's search for her birth relatives spans years and involves a search agency, a PI, a confidential intermediary, a judge, an adoption agency, a social worker, and a genealogist. By journey's end, what began as a simple desire for a family medical history has evolved into a complicated quest―one that unearths secrets, lies, and family members that are literally right next door.
Belonging Matters: Conversations on Adoption, Family & Kinship supports the adoption community while creating a conversation with those not directly touched by adoption. The collection explores the pursuit of identity and the boundaries of family and kinship. It challenges the reader to embrace all of who we come to be, and to discern with whom and where we belong. Because belonging defines the human experience, and it is what nourishes our spirit, fuels us with purpose, and compels us to soar beyond the limitations of our lived experience.
| Where: | Adoptee Authors, Booth #223 (Seats 1)  |
| When: | Sun, Mar 16, 3:00 pm - 5:00 pm |
| Genre: | Memoir / Essays / Creative Nonfiction |
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