Memoir of a woman who was raised first by her parents, and then by her grandfather and his wife. Story of how her parents gave away several of their children to be adopted. ( )

Well written memoir by a woman who survived a difficult childhood which included, among other things, seeing her baby sisters given up for adoption. King describes her family in a detailed unapologetic style; the story itself is sad but intriguing. This was a quick read. One of the best memoirs I've read in a while. ( )

Generally I find memoirs as exercises in egotism on the part of the author. This one is not. I think it is a very fair presentation of Ms. King's quite unique experiences growing up. It starts with the author going to Oklahoma because the grandmother who raised her is dying. Her biological parents produced six kids of which they raised none. The book is written in flashbacks. She does not meet three of her sisters until she is an adult. This is a very fragmented family. I think that King is a great author but I wonder what she will do now that she has told her life story. I hope that she will be daring and write fiction. ( )

Lately I have read many memoirs, most of them by women who are grieving losses and trying to understand their impact. Bastards is one of those books. Mary Anna King was born into a family that was broken up by parents who were too young, too poor and had too many babies to care for. Mary was adopted by her grandmother, a cold and distant woman and never attached to her. While Mary clearly had a compelling story it did not stick with me. I know that she had her sorrows but I did not particularly feel her pain while reading about about it or think about it when I was done. I also do not think this book is about adoption, per se. I'm not sure that Mary did not bond to her grandmother because she was adopted by her or because she was a cold woman who found it hard to love. We know so much more about adoption now and how it is a complicated dance of loss and grief and connection and not the fairy tale we have been taught by the media. Yet, many children do not feel attached to bio parents who cannot understand them or where there is not a good fit. In any case, while I admire Mary's determination to find her family and the book is very well-written I just did not find it a compelling read.

Thank you Edelweiss for allowing me to review this book for an honest opinion. ( )

Another sad episode in the brutal childhood memoir genre, this one is stranger than most: no physical abuse, but Mary Anna is born to parents who reunited occasionally for the unlikely purpose of having children, who were then placed for adoption. This left the author with four sisters she never met until they each reached age 18. Mary Anna and another sister and brother were cycled between their mother in New Jersey and a grandfather/step grandmother in Oklahoma.

A strange upbringing for sure, with eventual sibling reunions. I did not find the writing or the story particularly moving or riveting, especially as compared to the inspirational "Etched In Sand" by Regina Calcaterra, or the classic "Glass Castles" by Jeanette Walls.

Why don't men write these? Other than Austin Burroughs and "Running With Scissors", I can't recall any. ( )