THE FOUNDLING is a hard book to review. The writing and character development were well done, but the topic itself is horrific...and even worse, based on true events.

Although outside of my current preferred genre, I still quite enjoyed following Mary Engle's journey to understanding the dark secrets of the institution she works fo (even though I wanted to smack her upside the head a few times!)

Thank you to Netgalley, the author and publisher for my #arc! If you enjoyed THE RADIUM GIRLS, you should definitely pick this one up.

My first book of 2023 finished; and it was a doozie! The Foundling is about eugenics in American during the 1920s. Not unlike what happened commonly, and even into the 1970s or later with women who were inconvenient, ‘hysterical’, burdensome, or otherwise too independent; husbands, fathers, brothers, etc. would pack them off to a facility. In many cases it was an asylum (aka prison). In Ann Leary’s The Founding it is a community (aka compound) where girls are made to work until they are past the age of child birthing. Essentially a 30+ year sentence if you were shipped off at the age of say 20 years old. All in the name of eugenics.

Eugenics is an interesting, and compelling theory, when it is explained by someone with charisma, fancy medical degrees, or of great prestige. Even Charles Darwin implies that other species (besides humans) inherently cut out the feeble and weak in order to reproduce the best possible animal to survive. Many today may not even realize that they likely believe this to a certain degree; without realizing what it might mean or how it could be construed, used to control populations, and dismiss minority groups. It’s obviously wrong. Period. No one should be told they cannot have children, be locked up, or otherwise sterilized because of who they are; be it race, religion, mental capacity, physical disability or otherwise. It’s disgusting; and yet even as the original ‘scientific’ literature is quoted in The Foundling I can see how compelling of an argument the theory of eugenics makes. History goes on to prove how true this was/is as in WWII Adolf Hitler took the concept of eugenics to its absolute extreme with his concentration camps, genocide, and mass sterilization of anyone who didn’t fit his intensely narrow view of ‘worthwhile human beings’.

Thankfully, The Foundling does an excellent job of taking our leading girl/lady on a journey from belief, to acceptance, to defence, to the utter and complete realization that she was tricked by very smart, charming, and ruthlessly greed folks. Thus the reader also goes on this journey too. Whether you need help to see the evil or not; I’d be shocked to hear someone reading this and not coming out of it with the realization that the greed, power, and dominance of our antagonist characters is obviously, undoubtedly wrong and/or evil; I think readers will have some connection with our leading lady as she learns the world around her is not easily navigated by blindly respecting authority. A lie she was told and believed upon leaving the Catholic orphanage she was raised in.

From page 1 Leary writes a compelling story. She builds up sympathy, and even empathy, for her fictional lead character. While all characters, plots, etc are fictional; there is truth in every line of Leary’s fast-paced novel. It’s clear her research has been done, and she has thought a lot about how one might get drawn in or caught up in something and be fooled for a time. We still see that today; look at those who were fooled by cryptocurrency kings who toted huge returns to investors; all the while embezzling the money and using it to buy themselves mansions while their companies fell further into debt. People want to believe they are inherently better, smarter, stronger, and capable of finding a way to justify those beliefs. For whatever reason (humanity, society, religion, culture, survival instinct, etc), I’m sorry to say, humans have this massive crutch to feel superior to everything and everyone around them.

I don’t want to give too much away regarding how The Foundling reveals and uncovers it’s secrets; as it would be a shame to give them away. I can share that my immediate thought when thinking of a comparison novel is one I read earlier in 2022 called “Looking for Jane”. A novel based on the illegal abortion network of the 1960s and beyond. The Foundling has many similarities in that as the story is unfolding, it reveals horrific moments in recent history that we should all be aware of; as well as shows the reader why it’s wrong to believe the misguided ‘science’ of those times. Instead of lecturing about the practices or choices made; we are shown how they hurt the women involved. How quickly they can turn and be used against women by cunning men (and sadly some women) to control, hide, and otherwise dispose of ‘inconveniences’.

I believe The Foundling is an important historical fiction novel that people should absolutely read and understand it. Take a moment and think of someone, a celebrity (in whatever way), that you look up to; so you question what they say? If you don’t maybe you should? Just because we aspire to be like someone, or love the work or talent someone does/has, doesn’t mean we must accept every inch of their personality, beliefs, and choices as scripture. In fact, I’ve learned over my 40 years of living, that the people you need to question most stringently are those you’re closest to, or those you look up to the most. As they are the most likely to have major flaws you rationalize away so as not to accept that all humans are flawed and all humans are capable of making greedy decisions to benefit themselves. Be it a parent, celebrity, religious icon, best friend or spouse, or from within yourself; decisions always hold a bit of want, need, and greed in them. That is inherent in all humans on a grand scale; and we can only combat it by asking ourselves, and others, a lot of complex, difficult, and even heart wrenching questions.

The Foundling does an amazing job of reminding the reader of these misguided theories and how they come to take root (often resulting in more patriarchal control); while exposing a horrible time of discrimination and imprisonment over women of child birthing age. Not only is the story fast-paced, intriguing, and well written; but there is something to learn about ourselves and human nature from the revelations of our leading girl.

Please note: I received an eARC of this book from the publisher via NetGalley. This is an honest and unbiased review.

This was a great book! I loved the sense of being within that decade and the morality parallels of the main characters religious upbringing.
An excellent glimpse at the prominent sexual abuse and gender inequality of this time period.
I also appreciate that the novel was unpredictable, where I thought the story was headed wasn’t where it ended up in several scenarios. Thank you for the advanced copy!

Read if you like: historical mysteries/thrillers
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Mary Engle gets a job as a secretary at an institution for mentally disabled women, but when she runs into a woman she was friends with at the orphanage she grew up in, she questions the true purpose of the institution. She doesn’t think her friend should actually be an inmate.
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This book shows a terrible side of history where women were locked up for moral, not mental reasons. The book seemed a bit slow paced at the beginning but picked up in the second half!
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CW: death of a parent, institutionalized against your will, pregnancy, birth, forced adoption, orphanage.

This was very different from Ann's other books! I could not put it down! When I read the backstory of her inspiration, I got it. I highly recommend it for a summer read!

This book intrigued me because I too am interested in my own family history. Luckily, I didn't uncover anything as sinister as this book.

Mary Engle, at 18 is hired as a secretary at an institution for mentally disabled women called the Nettleton State Village for Feeble Minded Women.
Mary is enamored with the facilities psychiatrist, Dr. Vogel, but who is Dr. Vogel really?.

Mary sees a woman she knows at the facility, someone she knew from the orphanage (Mary spent time at an orphanage when she was a child). She knows this woman doesn't belong there so she goes on a journey to uncover why.

If you love historical fiction that rings true, this book is for you. Leary delves into a terrifying topic that quite frankly needs a heck of a lot more attention! Every woman should read this!

Excellently written, paced perfectly, and brings to light a horrific history of committing women to institutions they don't belong in.

Mary Engle is awed and grateful for her employment at the Nettleton State Village for Feeble-Minded Women of Child-Bearing Age. But finding that many of the women are sent to this institution to basically rid society or their husbands of them, leads Mary to question the director of the institute, renowned Dr. Agnes Vogel. Well written and based on historical facts, worth reading.

Leary is a successful American author. Her previous books include "The Children" and "The Good House", which was adapted into a movie that released in 2021. This new release is an historical fiction set in 1927 and was inspired by a true story. It sheds light on the practice of locking women up during child bearing years if they were 'feeble-minded' so that they could not bear children and pass on their genes ( part of the 'eugenics' movement). As abhorrent as the practice was, it was also used by society (and husbands) to lock away troublesome, but sound minded women. The book features Mary, a young orphan who gets a dream job working as a secretary at one such site. When she encounters a friend from the orphanage who is an inmate at the site, she begins to question what she has been told. This is a wonderful recommendation for fans of such books as "The Orphan Train" or "The Home for Unwanted Girls" I really enjoyed it.

I really loved this novel. I thought this was a really well-researched historical fiction. I love it when I learn something from a book, and I went into this story not knowing very much about eugenics or it's history in the United States. I wasn't aware until now that women were committed to asylums against their will by their husbands or for indiscretions like having babies out of wedlock under the premise of being "feeble-minded".

I really didn't like Mary at the beginning of this novel. She admires Dr. Vogel and her work at the asylum. She is naive and blinds herself to what's really going on around her. I liked her growth as a character throughout the story, and she won me over by the end.

This is not a thriller by any means, but it does have a creepy suspensefulness throughout. The ending had me shocked. I didn't anticipate what happened at all.

Overall, I thought this was a really good story and definitely worth the read!

Thanks to Netgalley and the publisher for the ARC in exchange for an honest review.

The Foundling is a historical fiction novel about the practice of eugenics. This is a topic I didn’t know much about. I dug into my country (Canada’s) sordid history on the subject, and WOW. Mind blown. The book was inspired by the author’s own grandmother. It is obvious that Ann Leary did a great deal of research on the subject, and the timeline of the story (the 1920s). The details are solid and well-written.

Our main character, Mary, lands a job at the tender age of 18 as a secretary at the Nettleton State Village for Feebleminded Women of Childbearing Age. There she is finally able to come into her own, gaining confidence in herself as she excels at her job. She greatly admires her boss, Dr. Vogel, the superintendent of the Home.

Mary is quite naive at the start of the book. She makes a lot of excuses to maintain her new lifestyle. She only starts to have doubts when she recognizes a friend from her childhood. It was nice to see Mary become more sure of herself and ethical, but I found her development to be a little sudden, and this a tad bit unbelievable. I just never really connected with Mary. She seemed like a contradiction.

Dr. Vogel’s development, as seen through Mary’s eyes, was very interesting. It did become a little cartoonish towards the end.

I think the biggest draw for me was the actual history behind the story. The fact that women were committed to facilities like this for the most minor of offences. I would have enjoyed reading more about the “inmates” of the home, and less about Mary’s day to day life, honestly.

The story did feel a little slow. It picks up in the last third or so, when we get a bit of a better view on how the girls are treated, and the community’s true feelings.

Overall an interesting read with a few hiccups. Actual rating 3.5 stars, rounded up.

Thank you to NetGalley and Simon & Schuster Canada for providing the ARC of this book. This review is my honest and voluntary opinion.

I just finished reading the foundling by Ann Leary and here is my review.

Mary Engle is thrilled when she is hired to be a secretary at an institution for mentally disabled women called the Nettleton State Village for Feeble Minded Women of Childbearing Age..
Feeling like the institution is a worthwhile place to work and Dr Vogel, being the amazing psychiatrist that she is and a woman heading such an initiative in the 1920s, is a once in a lifetime job for Mary.
Soon she sees a woman, someone she was at the orphanage with. A woman who could not be further from the feeble minded women that were supposed to be there. The more Mary digs, the more sinister the institution becomes. Can Mary help free her friend? Or will she discover it’s not just about the women that are being held at Nettleton but a whole underbelly of criminal activity that might just put Mary in a position she cannot get herself out of…

This book covers some of the coolest parts of the 20s and the emphasis that some Doctors and scientists had on the idea of eugenics. You could literally be institutionalized by your husband based on his word back then. Scary thought isn’t it? Being a female reader could have landed you in one of these places…. Shudder the thought.

Mary and Lillian were both raised in a Catholic orphanage. Mary because her mother died and her father worked away, and Lillian was a foundling. Lillian ends up at Nettleton because of having a child out of wedlock with a man of color. Her intake form states she has the mental faculties of an 8 year old. I love that Mary, even though she was afraid, took the time to figure out what happened and why she ended up there. It showed real character to be 18 years old and do something so brave, during a time when she could have so easily wound up there herself. These women were preyed upon by a corrupt system and I am so glad things have changed in the last 100 years.

I really enjoyed watching the characters develop and how Dr. Vogels real personality is finally exposed. I found the book was well paced, excellently written and a really gritty read. The book was well researched and thorough. I loved the ending, I don’t think it could have ended any better. I could have done without the part with Mary’s uncle, I don’t think it was necessary to the storyline but it also didn’t hurt it.

Hang onto your shorts because you are in for the ride of your life.
If you are a fan of historical fiction and love a book that will keep the pages turning and your heart racing, this has to be your next read.

5 stars!

Thank you to netgalley and Simon and schuster Canada for my ARC in exchange for my honest review.

This was a good book based loosely on the author's family history, it deals with a subject that may hit home with some, eugenics, the practice, at the time, of putting women in institutions to prevent them from reproducing. These women were usually young, and deemed feebleminded usually by their family or husband. What makes them feebleminded? Almost anything it would appear, especially if the husband wanted out of the marriage. Mary Engle was raised in a Catholic orphanage from a young age, when she turns 18 in 1927, she is offered a position at an institution that houses women who are of child bearing age, but deemed feebleminded. Mary is eager to show the institution director, Dr Vogel, how dedicated she is to her position and very quickly becomes her personal secretary. Not long after Mary sees an inmate who she knew from her time at the orphanage, someone she knows should not be there. The woman, Lillian, begs Mary to help her escape, something Mary is reluctant to do because of their history at the orphanage. I found the middle portion of this story dragged a bit for me, I was engaged enough in the story though that I wanted to finish, which I was glad I did as the end really picked up. I would recommend. Thanks to #Netgalley and #Schrinber for the ARC.

This is my third book by Ann Leary and as much as I loved both The Good House and The Children this is by far my favourite. This story is so heartbreakingly sad, made even more so by the fact it is based on true events...of the author's grandmother no less. Mary and Bertie were so brave to try and carry out their plan and fight back. That wasn't such an easy thing to do in the 1920s, especially for women.

There was so much judgement against women and minorities back then, especially in small towns and counties. So sad that some of these judgements and prejudices still exist today. Ann Leary writes such compelling stories and I was captivated from the start with this one. I felt so many things while reading this, my emotions were all over the place. It's the type of book you want to hug when you are done. I loved the writing, the plot and characters so much and was pleasantly surprised by the ending. What a marvelous read. All. The. Stars.