Book Review: Before We Were Yours

Before We Were Yours by Lisa Wingate. I picked this book up after seeing it on the New York Times Bestseller List. I am always looking for something new to read and am excited to find an author that already has several books published.

Before We Were Yours tells the story of the Foss siblings and how they ended up in the Tennessee Children’s Home Society orphanage. They are repeatedly reassured that they will soon be returned to their parents. The eldest sibling Rill fights the cruel director of the orphanage to keep her sisters and brother together. Before long they realize that they are being separated and illegally adopted by wealthy families.

The story starts in 1939 in Memphis and goes back and forth from that time to present day. What unfolds is the journey each of the siblings have taken after leaving the orphanage. Soon brought into the mix is Avery Stafford, who was born into a family of wealth and privilege. Avery returns home to help her father, who is facing a health issue. While home Avery visits with her grandmother and a chance encounter makes her question her families hidden past. Avery begins asking questions and searching for a truth that may ruin her family or make it whole again.

Lisa Wingate’s, Before We Were Yours is based on one of America’s most notorious real-life scandals. Georgia Tann, director of a Memphis-based adoption organization, kidnapped and sold poor children to wealthy families all over the country. For me this was a bonus to reading the book, as I learned something new.

I highly recommend this book. The story was emotional and riveting. I couldn’t put it down and was anxious for the mystery of the Foss siblings to be solved. Before We Were Yours is the first book of Lisa Wingate’s that I read and I’m excited by the prospect of reading more of her books.

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Volume 10, Issue 3, Posted 2:41 PM, 03.10.2019