Bastards: A Memoir, (Paperback)

from bah195

This is the memoir of Mary Anna King who was born into poverty in southern New Jersey. She watched her mother give away one of her newborn sisters every year to another family. Then one day she was sent to Oklahoma to live with her grandfather and given a new name. When Mary was in college her si...

from rmarcin

Memoir of a woman who was raised first by her parents, and then by her grandfather and his wife. Story of how her parents gave away several of their children to be adopted.

from muddyboy

Generally I find memoirs as exercises in egotism on the part of the author. This one is not. I think it is a very fair presentation of Ms. King's quite unique experiences growing up. It starts with the author going to Oklahoma because the grandmother who raised her is dying. Her biological parent...

from homeschoolmimzi

Well written memoir by a woman who survived a difficult childhood which included, among other things, seeing her baby sisters given up for adoption. King describes her family in a detailed unapologetic style; the story itself is sad but intriguing. This was a quick read. One of the best memoirs I...

from froxgirl

Another sad episode in the brutal childhood memoir genre, this one is stranger than most: no physical abuse, but Mary Anna is born to parents who reunited occasionally for the unlikely purpose of having children, who were then placed for adoption. This left the author with four sisters she never ...