Adoption Books and Movies

This is an evolving list of adoption related reading materials. By no means have we read all of these books---this is just a list we have compiled through the years of recommended readings. If you have reviewed any of these books on your blog, please send a link and we'd be happy to link to your site! Also feel free to email us curdsandkimchi (at) yahoo.com with recommendations or suggestions.

Adoption Books - Instructional/educational

• Attaching in Adoption: Practical Tools for Today's Parents by Deborah Gray
• Cultures of Transnational Adoption
  
• How to Adopt Internationally: A Guide for Agency-Directed and Independent Adoptions
  by Jan Nelson-Erichsen
• Parenting Your Internationally Adopted Child: From Your First Hours Together Through the Teen Yearsby Patty Cogen
• Twenty Things Adopted Kids Wish Their Adoptive Parents Knew by Sherrie Eldridge (Read our review HERE)
• 20 Things Adoptive Parents Need to Succeed by Sherrie Eldridge
• You Can Adopt: An Adoptive Families Guideby Susan Caughman and Isolde Motley (also available in  iTunes, iPhone apps, and for Kindle) (Read our review HERE)
• Culture Keeping: White Mothers, International Adoption, and the Negotiation of Family Difference by Heather Jacobson
• Cross Cultural Adoption: How To Answer Questions from Family, Friends & Community
  by Amy Coughlin and Caryn Ambramowitz (Read our review HERE)
• Secret Thoughts of An Adoptive Mother by Jana Wolff || (Read our review HERE)
• Adoption is a Family Affair!: What Relatives and Friends Must Know by Patricia Irwin Johnston
• Becoming a Family: Promoting Healthy Attachments with Your Adopted Child by Lark Eshleman
• "Why Are All The Black Kids Sitting Together in the Cafeteria?": A Psychologist Explains the Development of Racial Identity by Beverly Daniel Tatum
• Being Adopted: The Lifelong Search for Self by David Brodzinsky
• In On It: What Adoptive Parents Would Like You To Know About Adoption
   

Adoption Books - Narrative

• A Single Square Picture: A Korean Adoptees Search for Her Roots by Katy Robinson 
• After The Morning Calm: Reflections of Korean Adoptees by Wilkinson & Fox
• Beyond Good Intentions: A Mother Reflects On Raising Internationally Adopted Children by Cheri Register
• Daughter From Afar: A Family's International Adoption Story by Sarah Woodard
• I Wish For You A Beautiful Life by Susan Dorow
• Lucky Girl by Mei-Ling Hopgood (read our review HERE)
• Outsiders Within: Writing on Transnational Adoption by Trenka, Oparah and Shin
• Once They Hear My Name: Korean Adoptees and Their Journeys Towards Identity by Lee, Lammert and Hess
• When You Were Born in Korea: A Memory Book For Children Adopted from Korea by Brian E. Boyd
• Voices from Another Place: A Collection of Works from a Generation Born in Korea and Adopted to Other Countries by Susan Soon-Keum Cox
• The Adoption Reader: Birth Mothers, Adoptive Mothers and Adopted Daughters Tell Their Stories by Wadia-Ells

Adoption Books - For Children 

• A Mother For Choco
• I Wished for You: an Adoption Story  
• Over the Moon: An Adoption Tale 
• Rosie's Family: An Adoption Story 
• Tell Me Again About the Night I Was Born 
• The You We Adore

• The Family Book 
• We Adopted You, Benjamin Koo
• Motherbridge Of Love 
• You're Not My Real Mother  
• An American Face
• Mommy Far, Mommy Near: Addresses the topic of birth mothers
• Happy Adoption Day: Commemorates the adoptive family day 
• I Don't Have Your Eyes: Transracial adoption issues, ages 2-5
• Did My First Mother Love Me?: General adoption questions, ages 3 & up
• Families Are Different: Korean adoptee realizes all families are different, ages 4 & up
• When You Were Born In Korea: Memory book for children adopted from Korea
• The Coffee Can Kid: A story about a girl's adoption from Korea, ages 4 & up
• Jin Woo: Story about a family adopting a baby from Korea, ages 4 & up
• Ten Days and Nine Nights: Mother bringing a new baby from Korea, ages 4 & up 
• My Family Is Forever: Korean adoptee knows families are different, but forever, ages 3 & up

Korea and Korean Culture Books/Magazines

• Korean American Readings - Super spectacular blog with hundreds of books by and about Koreans and Korean Americans.

• Korea Magazine - Free monthly magazine with info about Korea.

• Hyphen Magazine - Magazine exploring Asian American culture and life.

• Audrey Magazine - The Asian American women's lifestyle magazine.

• Korean American Readings - An amazing collection of books by and about Korea and Korean Americans.

• Korean Quarterly - Non profit/volunteer publication on Korean American issues. 

• The Korean Table: From Barbecue to Bibimbap - A cookbook of 100 easy recipes.

• Dok Suni: Recipes From My Mother's Korean Kitchen

Race and ethnicity

• Race and Identity in Transracial Adoption: Suggestions for Adoptive Parents (download PDF 
• Asian Nation  - website about Asian history, culture and issues pertaining to Asian adoptees

Korean Culture Books - For Children

• Talk Story - Book lists of stories with Korean and Korean American characters and culture for children of all ages. There are also other Asian Pacific lists available.

• Korean Children's Favorite Stories - A breathtaking children's story book. Not only are the stories great, but the illustrations are spectacular.

• Waiting for Mama - A bilingual children's book first published by a Korean author in 1938. Lovely illustrations and great Korean cultural references.

• The Green Frogs - A Korean folktale.

• Bee-Bim Bop! - An illustrated cookbook/storybook for children.
• A Part Of The Ribbon -  Learn about the history, culture, language, customs and martial arts of Korea at a different periods in time. 9 and older

Adoption Magazines

• Adoption Today Magazine

• Adoptive Families

Adoption Themed Movies

• Adopted (The Movie)

• Mother and Child - Movie hasn't been released in DVD yet.

• Then She Found Me

Asian Culture & Heritage Movies

• The Grace Lee project

• Old Partner

• The Classic-Korean Love Story