The Children Money Can Buy covers decades of dramatic societal change in foster care and adoption, including the pendulum swings regarding open adoption and attitudes toward birth parents, the gradual acceptance of gay and lesbian adoption, the proliferation of unregulated adoption facilitators in the U.S., ethical concerns related to international adoption, and the role money inevitably plays in the foster care and adoption systems. Special attention is given to the practice of "baby brokering" and the accompanying exorbitant finder's fees and financial incentives encouraging birth mothers to relinquish (or pretend that they are planning to relinquish) their babies that permeate much of U.S. infant adoption today. The Children Money Can Buy illuminates the worlds of foster care and adoption through the personal stories Moody witnessed and experienced in her many years working in the foster care and adoption systems. These compelling stories about real people and situations illustrate larger life lessons about the way our society values-and fails to value-parents and children. They explore the root of ethical problems which are not only financially driven but reflect society's basic belief that some children are more valuable than others. Finally, Moody makes a plea for change and gives suggestions about how the foster care and adoption systems could work together for the benefit of children and families.
Anne Moody has enjoyed a long career in child welfare work and adoption counseling. Since the early 1980s, she has worked to improve upon the infant adoption process for both birth and adoptive parents. Anne is the Director of Adoption Connections in Bainbridge Island, Washington, and is also an adoptive parent.
Part One: Foster Care 1. Why Do I Want This Job? 2. Service Plans 3. Who Are These Parents and Children? 4. Foster Home Highs and Lows 5. The Cycle of Dysfunction 6. Boy Troubles 7. Termination of Parental Rights 8. Making My Escape Part Two: Agency Adoption 9. The Home Study Process 10. Adoption Is the Good Thing That Happens 11. Adoption Disruptions 12. "Doing Good" Isn't Always Good 13. The Need for Open Adoption 14. Finding Just The Right Home Part Three: Adoptive Parenthood and Sisterhood 15. Children Are Exactly Who They Are Meant To Be 16. How to Talk About Adoption 17. A Homeland Tour: Honoring Your Child's Heritage 18. A Sister's Journey of the Heart 19. Awkward (and Worse) Encounters for Adoptive Families 20. Jocelyn's Birth Mother Part Four: Adoption Connections 21. Our Own Adoption Agency 22. Birth Parent Counseling Etiquette 23. Two Open Adoptions 24. Choosing an Adoptive Family 25. Money Matters 26. Scammers 27. Can Foster Care and Adoption Work Together? Part Five: Changes 28. A Battle for Gay Adoption 29. Baby Brokers 30. The Ethics of International Adoption 31. The Ethics of Foster Care
As a young 20-something with a master's degree in social work, Moody took a job as a child-welfare caseworker that introduced her to the world of adoptions and foster care, beginning a lifelong commitment that is chronicled in this compassionate work. Moody touches on the adoption sector's ugly side, such as 'baby buying' and profit-driven adoption facilitators. She takes care to counterbalance these negatives, however, by also detailing the positive changes that have occurred in the field over the course of her career. These include the increasing acceptance of 'open adoptions,' in which birth parents are allowed to play some role in their children's lives, and of same-sex couples as adopters. Throughout, Moody shares the personal experiences of many children and parents (whose identities are protected), some happy, some sad. The author also recalls her commitment at 13 to eventually become an adoptive parent, a dream she made real 23 years later. Moody's experiences certainly inform her practical approach, which touches on subjects including how to talk about adoption with children and how adoptive families can present themselves to the outside world. For any family that has faced the difficult issues of adoption or fostering from any perspective, Moody's book will be a valuable tool. * Publishers Weekly * Anne Moody's insightful book captures the dynamic world of adoption. From her vantage point as a social worker and an adoptive mom, she provides compelling behind the scenes anecdotes that span state, international and domestic adoption. It's a great read for anyone exploring adoption. -- Shari Levine, Executive Director, Open Adoption and Family Services Anne Moody's writing helps open wide the heart. A perfectly arranged mixture of memoir and analysis, The Children Money Can Buy looks back over the author's long career of helping people navigate the shifting and confusing landscape of foster care and adoption, and helps the reader draw valuable lessons from her experience. Her stories are moving, instructive, and unforgettable, told in a voice that fills the reader with respect and trust. -- Rebecca Wells, author of Divine Secrets of the YaYa Sisterhood With the tenderness of memoir and the reach of great nonfiction, Anne Moody's The Children Money Can Buy examines the modern history of adoption from every angle. Moody draws on her own experiences to give us a book that is not just exhaustively researched, but personally lived. The result is deeply informative, yes, but also an intimate glimpse inside the adoption experience. -- Claire Dederer, author of Poser: My Life in Twenty-Three Yoga Poses I've read a lot of books on adoption and the foster care system, but none by an author with the breadth and depth of experience Anne has...she presents a fair and well-considered view of the matters at hand, and her persona on the page is inviting and winning. Anne's work sheds new light on an important topic we rarely hear about. What Anne has to say stands a good chance to make this world a better place. -- David Guterson, author of Snow Falling on Cedars
