I loved The Name She Gave Me so much. It’s tender and emotional and as an adoptee, I loved it. So when I had the chance to host a guest post, I was thrilled. Check out this guest post below and the giveaway!
Summary
On Shelves Now!
"Wistful verse highlights small but telling moments throughout Rynn’s search…The author’s lived history with foster care and adoption gives the narrative nuance and authority. Emotionally complex and empathetic characters…and a faithfully depicted rural landscape form an exemplary backdrop for this contemplative novel."
—Publishers Weekly (starred review)
"Compassionate and compelling."
—Kirkus
A heartbreakingly beautiful novel in verse about adoption, family, friendship, and love in all its many forms, perfect for fans of Robin Benway and Jandy Nelson, from the acclaimed author of Three Things I Know Are True.
Rynn was born with a hole in her heart—literally. Although it was fixed long ago, she still feels an emptiness there when she wonders about her birth family.
As her relationship with her adoptive mother fractures, Rynn finally decides she needs to know more about the rest of her family. Her search starts with a name, the only thing she has from her birth mother, and she quickly learns that she has a younger sister living in foster care in a nearby town. But if Rynn reconnects with her biological sister, it may drive her adoptive family apart for good.
This powerful story uncovers both beautiful and heartbreaking truths and explores how challenging, yet healing, family can be.
(Disclaimer: Some of the links below are affiliate links. For more information you can look at the Policy page. If you’re uncomfortable with that, know you can look up the book on any of the sites below to avoid the link)
Find The Name She Gave Me on Goodreads, Amazon, Indiebound, Bookshop.org & The Book Depository.
Guest Post
Welcome to The Name She Gave Me Blog Tour!
From the Author
by Betty Culley
When I was growing up, I was told by my adoptive parents not to tell people I was adopted. It’s not something anyone needs to know. I don’t remember discussing being adopted with my friends. And besides my two adopted siblings (from two different families) I didn’t know anyone else who was adopted.
I grew up in a time when most adoptions were closed and before there was real awareness of the effects of this on everyone involved. When I was in college, I went to a panel with speakers from the adoption triad: adoptive parents, birth parents, and adoptees. It was the first time I’d seen all three parties talking openly and honestly with each other about their experiences.
During the drafting of The Name She Gave Me, I reached out to people in Maine involved in foster care and adoption, including foster parents, guardians ad litem, adoptive parents, birthparents, kinship care providers, and an attorney who was the child protective division chief at the Office of the Maine Attorney General. I learned about the efforts to keep biological siblings in each other’s lives and all the different ways these connections are so important.
I also started talking with other people about what I was writing and what happened really surprised me. I was told about children given up and children found, about searches that uncovered new family members and others that turned out to be fruitless. So many more families than I knew or expected are impacted by adoption and foster care.
Now that I know the statistics—there are over 400,000 children in foster care in the United States, as well as 5 million Americans are adopted— it shouldn’t surprise me that there are so many families affected. It’s my hope that as these stories are told, in both non-fiction and fiction, no one will have to feel alone anymore.
Giveaway
GIVEAWAY
- One (1) winner will receive a finished copy of The Name She Gave Me
- US/Can only
- Ends 7/10 at 11:59pm ET
- Enter via the Rafflecopter below
- Visit the other stops on the tour for more chances to win!
Blog Tour Schedule
Blog Tour Schedule:
June 27th — Feed Your Fiction Addiction
June 28th — BookHounds
June 29th — YA Book Nerd
June 30th — A Dream Within a Dream
July 1st — Utopia State of Mind
About the Author
Website | Facebook | Instagram | Twitter
Betty Culley's debut novel in verse Three Things I Know Are True, was a Kids' Indie Next List Top Ten Pick, an ALA-YALSA Best Fiction for Young Adults Nominee, and the 2021 Maine Literary Book Award Winner for Young People's Literature. Her first middle-grade novel Down to Earth was inspired by her fascination with meteorites, voyagers from another place and time. She's an RN who worked as an obstetrics nurse and as a pediatric home hospice nurse. She lives in central Maine, where the rivers run through the small towns.
If I were to change my name I’d choose Michiko.
Hmm, great question. As an adult, I don’t really have a desire to change my name. I remember wanting to be Rachel or Renee when I was a kid, though.
My phone keeps thinking my name is Kiku lol
I’m not seeing any comments, so I’ll try again. If I changed my name, I might choose Kaori.