The Basics of Adoption

"The Basics of Adoption is a gold mine. This is a well-written, reasoned and reasonable guide for parents considering and actively involved in the adoption process. Practical, concise and thoughtful, this guide provides prospective adoptive parents with a step-by-step program to understand important issues and make critical decisions. The Basics of Adoption will be the only book I recommend when families are considering or involved in adoption." -- Sam Goldstein, Ph.D. leading author on childhood disorders, founder of Neurology, Learning and Behavior Center. "The Basics of Adoption is an invaluable tool for helping adoptive parents understand and navigate the adoption process from the start of their first consideration to the finish. Adoptive parents will benefit greatly from this resource, whether they are just considering the prospect of adoption and are wondering what to expect, or are experienced adoptive parents who are wondering why the agencies established the policies they did. Addressing both domestic and international adoptions, the book is thorough and well-researched, and it provides practical advice in a way that is easy to understand and interesting to read. Adoption professionals have a new tool in their libraries to increase their effectiveness in working with families who seek their services as part of the adoption process. I will be recommending it to adoptive parents with whom I work." -- Sharon D. Gary, M.S., Licensed Senior Psychological Examiner, Founding Member of ATTACh (Association for the Training and Treatment of Attachment Disorders in Children)

Taking a look at the adoption process, this guide provides prospective adoptive parents with the insider information that they need to navigate the process, and it provides students with the expert insight they need to grasp classroom theory. It also includes a directory of adoption agencies in the United States and Canada.

With about 70,000 domestic and international adoptions each year in the United States and Canada, adoption remains a major means of building families in both countries. Its continued success can be inferred not only from the yearly statistics, but from a report issued in 2003 by the U.S. Census Bureau. To the surprise of many, the report announced the existence of 1.6 million adopted children in the U.S. under the age of eighteen. Written by a former social worker who has placed hundreds of children in foster and adoptive homes and a clinical psychologist who has counseled adopted children and parents, this book offers a comprehensive look at the adoption process by merging the best of social work with the best of psychology.

Adoption can be a frustrating and intimidating undertaking for the unprepared. This guide provides prospective adoptive parents with the insider information that they need to navigate the process-and it provides students with the sort of expert opinion that they need to grasp the academic theory they receive in the classroom.