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Adoption, identity, and reality collide in this powerful memoir.
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The Girl I Am, Was, and Never Will Be

A Speculative Memoir of Transracial Adoption

RRP$26.99

$22.57

  • Paperback

    256 pages

  • Release Date

    13 February 2024

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Summary

Part memoir, part speculative fiction, The Girl I Am, Was, and Never Will Be explores the often surreal experience of growing up as a mixed-Black transracial adoptee.

A MICHAEL L. PRINTZ HONOR BOOK. Strikingly honest, this speculative memoir explores the rarely depicted experience of growing up as a mixed transracial adoptee and offers an insightful look into the discovery of one’s own identity.

“A fantastical, transcendent memory collage that shirks convention in sea…

Book Details

ISBN-13:9780593112014
ISBN-10:0593112016
Author:Shannon Gibney
Publisher:Dutton Books for Young Readers
Imprint:Dutton Books for Young Readers
Format:Paperback
Number of Pages:256
Release Date:13 February 2024
Weight:221g
Dimensions:15mm x 140mm x 210mm
Audience Age:14
A-Format
B-Format
The Girl I Am, Was, and Never Will Be by Shannon Gibney - ISBN: 9780593112014
140 × 210 mm
C-Format
A4
mm / in
What They're Saying

Critics Review

A Kirkus Reviews Best Book of the Year

“An ambitiously authentic adoption story where fiction does the work of truth, and archives, correspondence, and health records provide the roots of fantasy.”—Kirkus Reviews, starred review

“A fantastical, transcendent memory collage that shirks convention in search of what is real and true about familial bonds.”—Publishers Weekly, starred review

“Readers will praise the raw honesty and insight in this lovingly crafted memoir.”—Booklist, starred review

“An authentic journey for adoptees who are not allowed to feel sad but thrust into a stance of gratitude for a life they were given and for all readers who, after a loss, are reconstructing their identities.”—School Library Journal

“This deeply felt and unusually creative book is recommended for readers aged fourteen to adult, and will be an especially important resource for people of all ages with a connection to transracial adoption. The final section of the book, a group text thread including the author and other writers with this background, resonates with the solace of shared experience.”—Minneapolis Star Tribune

“Gibney captures such interior and intimate adoptee feelings. It’s so rare to see it evoked on the page. Breathtakingly beautiful.”—Kimberly McKee, PhD, author of Disrupting Kinship: Transnational Politics of Korean Adoption in the United States

About The Author

Shannon Gibney

Shannon Gibney is an author and university professor. Her novel See No Color, drawn from her life as a transracial adoptee, was hailed by Kirkus as “an exceptionally accomplished debut” and by Publishers Weekly as “an unflinching look at the complexities of racial identity.” Her sophomore novel, Dream Country, received five starred reviews and earned her a second Minnesota Book Award. The Girl I Am, Was, and Never Will Be earned a Michael L. Printz Honor. She lives with her two Liberian-American children in Minneapolis, Minnesota.

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