Where We Belong: A Review

From Goodreads:  Marian Caldwell is a thirty-six year old television producer, living her dream in New York City. With a fulfilling career and satisfying relationship, she has convinced everyone, including herself, that her life is just as she wants it to be. But one night, Marian answers a knock on the door . . . only to find Kirby Rose, an eighteen-year-old girl with a key to a past that Marian thought she had sealed off forever. From the moment Kirby appears on her doorstep, Marian’s perfectly constructed world—and her very identity—will be shaken to its core, resurrecting ghosts and memories of a passionate young love affair that threaten everything that has come to define her.
 
For the precocious and determined Kirby, the encounter will spur a process of discovery that ushers her across the threshold of adulthood, forcing her to re-evaluate her family and future in a wise and bittersweet light. As the two women embark on a journey to find the one thing missing in their lives, each will come to recognize that where we belong is often where we least expect to find ourselves—a place that we may have willed ourselves to forget, but that the heart remembers forever.

My Review:  I was on the fence about reading this book since it is largely focused on adoption.  I have found that books about adoption sometimes gloss over reality and it all ends up in a tidy little bow by the end.  

The characters, while somewhat flat, are relatable.  They feel the emotions one would expect them to feel. I found myself empathizing with almost all of them, oddly enough though, not with the adoptive mother.  Her resentment of her daughter's birth parents is probably typical to some adoptions, but not to ours and so I had a tough time with her.  I could understand her hesitation, but I felt she should have been more supportive of something that was so obviously important to her daughter.

The story moved at a decent pace, but I can't say it was a page turner.  I enjoyed reading it slowly and thinking about the issues raised in the novel.  I liked how the author slowly peeled back layers of the story a bit a a time.  While most of it was predictable, it was still worth reading.

The book did have some short comings, mainly related to how adoption works.  Kirby was 18 when the story takes place, so things may have changed between then and now.  I am not sure how realistic it is that she was given Marion's address.  The way she just showed up out of the blue seems to be most people's worst nightmare.  I doubt either birth parents or adoptive parents would want to be surprised by someone on their doorstep.  

Also, the way Marion kept the entire pregnancy a secret from everyone, including the birthfather Conrad was deplorable.  It certainly made me think twice about a birthfather's rights, and I truly felt bad for his character.  

Long story short, each and every adoption is different, and this books tells one story.