Book Review: My Foster Care Journey

Lifebooks are very important for a foster child's grieving process. Through a lifebook a child can feel more complete and have a deeper understanding of why their life's journey has taken a rough turn. I always recommend O'Malley's books to new foster parents.

Pros

Cons

I love Beth O'Malley's work. She is very dedicated to the children in care. Not only is she an adoptive mother, but an adoptee. O'Malley understands a child's need to have his/her full life story. My Foster Care Journey is a very easy way for a foster child or foster parent to complete a first lifebook.

My Foster Care Journey offers a wide variety of pages for the foster child to explore, including ideas to help the child and foster parent find the missing information. It also offers reality and truth with easy to read and understand explanations of why children are in care. This book offers a check list for the child to check off the reasons why he/she is in care and a space for the social worker, therapist, or foster parent to agree or disagree with the child's answers. This is all great stuff to help the child open up lines of communication with trusted adults and to begin the healing process.

More Information

My Foster Care Journey is recommended for children up to age 8.

(Published by Adoption-Works, Winthrop, Massachusetts, 2006
ISBN 0970183267)