I was browsing through the bookstore the other day and stumbled across two books that are great for foster care adoption. One is specifically an adoption book, but the other is not.

First I’ll tell you about the non-adoption book.

I am a fan of the author Jan Karon. She wrote a series of books called “The Mitford Series”. I have read every one of them. The two main characters in the book are Father Timothy Cavanaugh, and his neighbor turned wife, Cynthia Coopersmith. A secondary character, but very much active in the stories, is Violet the cat. Cynthia writes stories about Violet her “real life” cat. These stories within a story have now been turned into real life stories. They are written by Melanie Cecka as Cynthia Coopersmith.

The one that applies to our kids is called “Violet Comes to Stay.” Violet the cat is part of a litter. She is adopted as a kitten but has a hard time with her “placements.” Her job as a cat is to catch mice and do what cats do with mice. The problem is, Violet can’t bring herself to kill them. Because she isn’t following the rules and doing what her owners want her to do, she is returned to her mom. She goes through a few placements each with the same result. Eventually she moves to Alice’s Bookstore. There she catches a mouse but again, can’t kill it. Alice is not upset by this because she says they are God’s creatures too, and allows Violet to stay.

Our kids can relate to this story. Multiple placements, being returned to birth parents, leaving a home because you’re not following the rules, and finally finding a place where you can fit in. However, since the main character is cat it can allow them to talk about all these issues in a less threatening manner.

The other book is written specifically for the adopted child, as you can tell from the title, “My Adopted Child: There’s No One Like You". Before anyone gets upset about the child being distinguished as an adopted child, this is part of a series of books written by Dr. Kevin Leman. They include My Oldest Child, My Middle Child, My Youngest Child and My Only Child. Dr. Leman has also written the best selling books “Making Your Children Mind without Losing Yours” and “The Birth Order Book”.

The Adopted Child book is told from the “viewpoint” of a Mama and Papa Bear talking about their cubs. The series celebrates why each child is unique and loved for who they are. The adopted child book is especially good because it starts off with the dreaded family tree assignment. Their son, who is a panda bear comes home from school with the assignment and doesn’t want to do it because his family tree will not look like anyone else’s. The Mama Bear talks about him being special and chosen and that even though he doesn’t look like them, they still love him. In the back is a space for you to make your own family tree, but it doesn’t look like the usual one. The spots to write names are scattered all over the tree and are not connected by lines. It is a great way to be able to include all the special people in our children’s lives.

Check out these two books. I think you’ll be able to enjoy them with your child.

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