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hundredsofpages's review against another edition
adventurous
mysterious
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.0
Content Warnings
Minor: Racism and Ableism
azazellos_fang's review against another edition
medium-paced
- Strong character development? N/A
- Loveable characters? N/A
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? N/A
Reviewing from an adoption, child welfare lens this is a frustrating book from the title to the very last page. The author falls into the same tired tropes of orphans, foster youth and adoptees needing to be either a savior or anti-christ (see Good Omens). If our Otherness isn't in service to the whole world (or at least potential adoptive family) then we are ungrateful, damaged goods and have no value as human beings. While she does make some effort to include a positive message it doesn't change the fact that the initial messages feed into adoption narratives that perpetuate misconceptions about orphans, foster youth and adoptees, their families of origin, and adoption practice in general. Not to mention her token inclusion of an East Asian adoptee and then the othering of that child because of their race and ethnicity that follows. As a book for kids I can't recommend this to ever being given to any child with family separation/loss in their history a or children who could ever come in contact with them - because often it is from other children that adoptees and foster youth first experience the painful othering and racism because of family loss. “Unadoptable” isn't a make-believe term that Tooke just made-up, there is history there. Many agencies use “Adoptable” as a term for the children they present to prospective parents. They change our stories, demographics, needs, and sugarcoat the realities of adoption to make children more "adoptable." The question of whether you were an 'unwanted throw away', 'given up as a sacrifice or for love' is something that many children with family separation/loss must contend with. Then comes the reality of who gets eventually "chosen" and who doesn't. There are hundreds of Facebook groups that promote 2nd Chance Adoptions that feed the unregulated (and often illegal) Rehoming of adoptees when adoptive parents decide they do not want the adoptee any longer. In these situations abuse of children is rampant. This is what many adoptees deal with and it pervades a child protection system in a society where children are deemed unwanted and unadoptable. With the persistence of this narrative comes little need or effort by adults in society to protect these children in cases of abuse because the adoptive parents have taken on a “difficult” child, they adopted the unadoptable. To a young adoptee “unadoptable” means undeserving of care and protection - it really just means unlovable. To have these issues used so thoughtlessly in a book for children who may have this history is devastating. Tooke seems to think her fantasies happen in a vacuum - they do not.
Content Warnings
Minor: Racism
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