I was hooked from the first page! This book is so endearing and gives such hope. I felt so connected to the characters. It was heartbreaking at times but hope prevails. I could read this one again!

One of the best books I read.. Lisa Wingate always gives us just want we want.. A true story teller.

Such a unique look at a somewhat unknown part of history! I loved Before We Were Yours and immediately read three of Lisa Wingate's other books when I finished it.

This is a heartbreaking dual-time novel!

I was caught up in the story from the very beginning. I loved the main characters and my heart broke for the situations that they were in. I can’t imagine people treating each other the way that Georgia Tann treated both the children and their birth parents. She was completely cruel and heartless. I completely understood why Rill did the things she did to try and protect herself and her siblings.

In the present day portion of the book Avery Stafford was caught by the expectations of others and trying to figure out what her own life was supposed to look like. I thoroughly enjoyed the fact that she was willing to go against what was expected of her and try to help May as well as her Grandma Judy. She is an incredibly strong woman with a heart for helping other people.

I liked going on the journey with Avery and Trent to find out how the people in the present were connected with each other and learning each one’s history.

I received a complimentary copy of this book from the publisher, through NetGalley. I was not required to write a positive review. All of the opinions expressed are my own.

I received a copy of this book courtesy of NetGalley and Lake Union Publishing in exchange for an honest review.

The events in this book are similar to those reported by children of the Tennessee Children’s Home Society from 1920-1950. However, the characters are created for this book. It was a heartbreaking story that was difficult to read at times when you realize much of what you are reading is a true account. At the same time, you feel obligated to listen to the truth.

At times it was confusing to keep track of because many of the characters had two names and the story alternates between past and present. Without giving any spoilers, you are trying to unravel Avery’s hidden family history as she does. So keeping track of the names helps.

All of the characters were well developed and relatable. The book was very engaging and hard to put down. It had a slow start for me but defiantly held my attendance after the first few chapters. I felt emotionally invested and I had to find out what happened with all the characters.

If you liked “Glass Castle” you will like this book.

Wingate's latest novel is based on horrifying true events from the 1930s and 40s. While a bit slow to start, once it gets going the story is alternately shocking and heart-wrenching, yet ultimately redemptive. Some of the events may be difficult for readers to relate to, but when the ending notes are complete everything makes sense. The historical storyline is much more in-depth and meaningful than the modern day story, but both come together for a touching conclusion.
Avery Foster has grown up in a life of privilege. Her father is a senator and she is an accomplished attorney. As her father is experiencing some health difficulties, she leaves her job to work alongside him while he goes through treatment. Avery has a chance encounter with a woman in a nursing home, which leads her to speak with her grandmother, who has some memory loss due to dementia. Those remarks allow Avery to uncover something hidden for many years. In 1939, Rill and her siblings live a bohemian lifestyle with their parents on a shanty boat in the river. When their mother is taken to the hospital during a difficult birth, Rill and the others are taken to a children's home with the promises of seeing their parents again. This sets in motion years of danger and cruelty for all of them.

Such a lovely, heartbreaking book, especially because it is based on true events! I really enjoyed this and heartily recommend it to anyone who loves a solid story. Keep kleenex nearby as you finish!

What a good book! This book fit into what I was studying last year about the eugenics movement and some of the similarities of that movement to what Georgia Tann was doing with kidnapping children from poor or less than perfect families and giving them to well-to-do families, all for her agenda and for the purpose of money.

What happened back then was devastating. It’s bad enough that the families are broken up but add to that the trauma and abuse that was heaped upon the kids, the blackmail of both the adoptive and the biological families, and a situation beyond horrible is created. And justice was never served on this side of heaven in the case of the Tennessee Children’s Home Society, leaving a trail of broken families and children who never recovered from the trauma.

I loved the character of Rill. I admired her strength and her efforts to keep her siblings together. The author showed the wide ranges of her character, from strong to devastated, from persevering to being broken. From being brave to being scared of the creepy Riggs. It was all so sad. The author did a very good job of researching this horrible part of history and portraying it accurately. This book was about strength, perseverance, and the bond of sibling love.

This book was provided by NetGalley and Ballantine Books in exchange for a review.

Rating: 5 out of 5.

I received this book free of charge from NetGalley in exchange for my honest review.

This book sat on my “to read” pile for way to long and now that I’ve read it, I’m wondering why it sat there so long.

This was a powerful story. I liked the two viewpoints and time periods. I don’t think the romance storyline involving Avery and Trent was really necessary, but it was subtle and did add a little bit.

Overall, a fabulous book and one that I’d recommend to others.

Rill and her four younger siblings live with their parents aboard a Missisisippi river shanty boat. Their life may seem unconventional and they face struggles, but still, it is a life of love and adventure. During one stormy night, Rill is left with her siblings so that her father can rush her mother to a local hospital. Strangers come and wrench the children from the only life they know, promising they will soon be reuinited with their parents. Unbeknownst to Rill, they are instead at the mercy of the notorious Tennessee Children's Home Society orphanage. Set against the backdrop of the true scandals in which poor children were effectively "sold" to wealthy parents, this gripping novel is all the more poignant knowing that it is based on real events.

This is one of the best books I have read. Lisa Wingate never disappoints. The story caught me up in the lives of this family from the very beginning and held me to the very end. Such emotions I felt for the children reading this and I loved the way the story was intertwined with past into the present. This was based on a part of history that I knew nothing about so it was also educational for me. I would recommend that everyone read this book!

Pehnomenal!
The novel had plenty to keep the reader invested. The true story of the Tennessee Home for Children in the first half of the 20th century, as well as the lives of river people made the book all the more interesting. The writing flowed, the story was engaging and enlightening. A great blend of fiction and non-fiction.

Thank you, Ballantine Books for our gifted review copy.

This is how you write a memorable and emotional historical fiction novel. Just incredible and so highly recommend to any and everyone!

This was a compelling read. I was engaged and honestly hoping for justice for wronged children and Family. This was a sobering look at the underbelly of adoption, especially when there is a lot of money on the table.

The writing was riveting as the author alternated between the past and present with two different characters who turned out to be connected. I found myself googling Georgia Tann lady to see what happened to her children's home of horrors. Stories like this reinforce people’s belief that Money can buy power and thus immunity from almost any despicable act in society. I’m glad this story was illuminated by the persistence of families who were not protected by our legal system.

Traveling With T’s Thoughts:

I had been holding off on reading this book for awhile because I thought I would ugly cry when reading this. However, while Lisa Wingate did write a great book and tugged at my heartstrings- I did not cry. My heart did ache for Rill and her family, though.

What I liked:

The cover. I love the girls. The colors.

Avery. You know she could have kept on living her charmed life. In some ways, I wouldn’t have blamed her if she had chosen that path. However, I loved her strength and determination to find the truth out.

Rill. All the kids in the Foss family won my heart in some manner, but Rill- she was a winner and a keeper and had so much about her that you couldn’t help but love her.



Bottom line: This is a sad part in history- and Georgia Tann deserved a world of hurt for what she put countless families through- all for the sake of a dollar. Lisa Wingate shines a light on this part in history and tells a story with thoughtfulness and care. A winner on all levels.

The dual timelines with dual storylines come together to make the perfect story. The present day story is Avery Stafford’s story. The story of a young woman finding out the history of her family and learning what shaped her grandmother into the woman she became. The past story is Rill’s story. The story of growing up with parents, being taken away, and then having a new family. I LOVED how this story came together. The present and the past came together perfectly, intertwining to tell the story of strength, love, and family.

The history of the Tennessee Children’s Society was chilling. There are children in the world that are truly orphans and possibly Ms. Tann saved them by taking them in and placing them with new parents. What chilled me though was the children who were taken from their parents against their wishes just because the parents were poor or the children looked like what adoptive parents were looking for. The idea that a biological parents, who cared for their children, lost their children at Ms. Tann’s whim made my stomach turn.

Before We Were Yours is a heartwarming, heart tugging, heart loving story. There is grief, new families, and reconnecting with those once thought lost. I enjoyed every page, chapter, and word of this book.

What an interesting book. With a present day storyline and a storyline that takes place in 1939 this book had parts that made me cry and parts that made me cringe.

What a difficult topic. With children being essentially stolen from their parents and then basically sold to couples that could afford it, this institution may have started with the best of intentions, but it went downhill really quickly. It was so hard to read about these families that were ripped to shreds due to miseducation and lies. It was just beyond heartbreaking to know that this was based completely in truth.

The parts that made me cringe were things that I have seen done over and over again in books that have a present and a past and I wish would stop being used - an elderly parent or grandparent that has a mental disease that keeps them from telling their family the truth as the family member must use other clues to discover the truth. It just seems overdone at this point and I wish we could go down this plot path another way.

Overall I liked the book because I got to read and get to know a point in history that I was unaware of, but there were moments that I didn't love how we got to the truth.

At times heartbreaking, at times hopeful, this story sheds a light on a horrible piece of history. Children torn from their parents and siblings and adopted by other families. Their treatment at an “orphanage” while waiting to be adopted is mind boggling. Due to haphazard record keeping, many children had no way of finding out who they really were. As sad as it sounds, those were the lucky ones. Unknown numbers of children died before they could be adopted with no one ever knowing.

Told in the past as Rill tells her story of being torn from her parents and told they would be coming back for once they were on their feet again as she tries to keep her brothers and sisters together. In the present, Avery is trying to understand why someone she has never met claims to own a broach given to her by her grandmother. This is a story about family and the lengths that we go to in order to protect them.

Before We Were Yours is a heartbreaking tale of a family torn apart by Children's services in the 30's. You are taken back and forth from past to present as the story is told through different perspectives. Get tissues ready, it's a heart wrenching story and the characters are so relatable, especially young Rill, 13 year old main character. This story will capture you from the beginning and keep you until the end. Lisa Wingate does a terrific job telling this story, while it's fiction, it is based on the real life of Georgia Tann, and the atrocious policies her adoption agency put into place to make money from the exploitation of helpless children and desperate families.

Very touching story . Family , love and loyalty at its finest. A story about being true to yourself and remembering those longer with you and carrying them in your heart, always....