Oh. My. God.

What a story. It's so hard to believe it's true even though I know it is. What a mystery to find yourself needing to unravel.

4.5 stars, rounded to 5
This was a thrilling book. It's a well-told story, although based on real events, it might not bring a satisfying ending, like you would expect for fiction. But, life is not a story, even if we try to make it one. Regardless, it's fascinating, and sad, and pretty big. Definitely a good way to spend your time, and I can recommend this book.

I thank the publisher for giving me a free copy of the ebook in exchange to my honest review. This has not affected my opinion.

I love that dna can be used to trace families and maybe solve mysteries like this one. I wish the author of the book much luck in solving the mysteries of missing children i his family. I am sure that there are so many people searching for loved ones, this should give them hope. Through dna testing our family is uniting with lost siblings and and their children. it really helps to heal the soul to find lost family members.

As a true crime enthusiast and a person who enjoys mysteries, I was thrilled to read this book. Paul did an excellent job showing the trail of information that led to his true identity, sharing the bits and pieces that went together like a puzzle. It was at once fascinating and harrowing. I enjoyed it and would recommend it to others.

I found this to be a great, thrilling read of real life mystery. I only gave one star off because it seemed to sort of muddle in some areas but over all it was still good enough that I couldn't put it down. I'm a fan of forensic shows so I was able to keep up with most of the science and such about DNA, but some might find it to be too much.

As a huge fan of true crime mysteries, I was very excited when I received this book from Netgalley in exchange for my own thoughts on it. This book was what I've always wondered about, and a topic I really enjoy: kidnapping memoirs. Well, this was more of an abandonment case than I thought it was! I felt Paul was very honest with his feelings about the case of both the kidnapping of the real Paul and the abandonment of himself in response to a tragic event in his family's life. I'll be honest, this book made me really think about what it would be like to realize that my sister wasn't really my sister, and my parents are really not my parents- it would be devastating! Likewise, though Paul's adoptive parents were really brash and harsh in my opinion, when I was talking about the book (I swear, my own sleuthing of the case probably got more people to read it because it was so interesting) a good point of Paul inadvertently opening up the possibility of stopping the search for their true son, and it's implied the real Paul may have met a depressing demise. Either way, I highly recommend this book, and will definitely be following the case to see where the story can go!

I couldn't put this book down. I first heard about this story when it was featured on ABC's 20/20 a few years ago. When I heard that Paul had written a book, I was eager to dig in & learn even more about his story. He has spent so much time searching for information, and it was wonderful to learn what he has discovered so far on his journey. I appreciated that he shared his reflections on how this journey and his life experiences have shaped him. That made this story even more meaningful for me.
The twists & turns, starts & stops that he's been through on this journey are hard to even fathom. The events along the way are described in a way that readers can follow but with plenty of detail to almost feel like you're on the journey with him.
This book not only delves into the details of his journey to uncover his biological roots & the mysterious events that led him to be abandoned as a child, but it also delves into the family dynamics at play within his adoptive family as well as his biological family. He also explored themes such as belonging, family, nature/nurture, identity, the toll secrecy takes on individuals & families, as well as forgiveness & reconciliation.
This book is a deeply personal glimpse into the unfathomable experiences Paul has had throughout his life. It was fascinating to me to read about the details of his story. The events of his life are a complex story in & of themselves, but he goes even further to explore the complexity of family dynamics, secrets, communication, dysfunction, tragedy, denial, anger, pain, grief, poverty, abuse, shame, and guilt, as well as redemption, forgiveness, and healing.
I am eager to continue to follow his story. I hope that he continues to unpack the way these traumatic experiences have shaped him. It would be wonderful to know that he's able to continue to find ways to heal and grow along this journey to even more self discovery. And I hope he continues to find answers to the remaining mysteries & questions he has. I am grateful that he shared his experience & gave readers an intimate glimpse into his incredible story.

I dislike rating memoirs this low because they tell the story of someone's life and who am I to judge them for the way they chose to tell it? That being said, this was kind of a mess. Paul Fronczak clearly is still too close to everything that happened and didn't have the time to process it. As a result, this memoir lacks self reflection and depth.

Paul Fronczak's story is mesmerising in its improbability: the people raising him had their son kidnapped from the hospital days after his birth and when a boy is found abandoned two years later it is assumed that he is the Fronczak boy. This book tells the story of Paul Fronczak's search for the truth and what happens when he finds it.

I really liked the idea of Paul's search for his identity but I did not appreciate the journey at all. His quest disrupts not only his own life and that of his wife and daughter, but that of his parents' and of uncountable strangers who happen to share his genetics. I found him to be difficult to relate to because of his apparent lack of empathy for the pain he causes.

But my main problem was his discussion of identity. Now, that is definitely a me thing and might not be a problem for other readers, but identity is a very important concept for me - in fact I am writing my PhD on identity construction. I seriously disliked the way the author boils down identity to genetics. This is so different to everything I believe in and I think it did a real disservice to the parents who raised Paul Fronczak.

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I received an arc of this book curtesy of NetGalley and Howard Books in exchange for an honest review. Thanks for that!

Very interesting and sad at the same time type of memoir on author trying to find his roots. He grew up as a child of a couple whose baby was kidnapped from the hospital but he finds out that wasn't him. So whose child was he? This book is about his search and passion to find out who he is. It was very interesting and I highly recommend it.

The mystery of who Paul really is, why he was left in a stroller in front of McCrory’s and who his real family are. Plus the mystery of the biggest manhunt in Chicago history with the kidnapping of the one day old infant. Throw in the ancestry and DNA hunting and you have a fantastic puzzle and human interest tale. Excellent read on many levels!

An astonishing, riveting, and heartfelt debut memoir of an infant abduction that led to the largest manhunt in the history of Chicago: “The Foundling” authored by Paul Fronczak with Alex Tresniowski is also about search for identity and truth found in family ties and connections, whether biological or of the heart.

Part I-- The Fronczak infant boy (Paul Joseph), born at the Chicago Michael Reese Hospital in Chicago on April 27, 1964 was abducted by a woman posing as a nurse. The suspect was seen by several people with the infant, after she took the baby from his mother for an alleged medical examination. On May 5th, Dora and Chester Fronczak returned to their home in an unmarked police car, as news media reporters attempted to get exclusive comments and interviews.
The local police force and FBI conducted an extensive search and investigation, yet the infant wasn’t found at the time. On July 2, 1965 an abandoned boy toddler was found at an exclusive shopping center in Newark, NJ.
By March of 1966, the FBI couldn’t confirm or deny the true identity of this “foundling” child. When Dora Fronczak saw the NJ toddler for the first time, she exclaimed: “My God! This is my baby!” Since no proof could be legally established, the Fronczak’s were permitted by the state of New Jersey to legally adopt the boy in 1967.

When Paul was an older youth, he found and read the old newspaper clippings of the mysterious child abduction. His overprotective mother never let him out of her sight, he was never allowed to roam about the neighborhood with his friends. Instinctively, Paul realized he was an “outsider” in his family. He didn’t resemble or act like a Fronczak; in their family portrait Paul looked as if he was photo-shopped in, he and his younger brother Dave had never gotten along. As Fronczak matured, he would realize in his strange and unusual upbringing, that his parents never acted in a manner of “mean-ness or neglect “ but were traumatized and acted out of fear resulting from their ordeal.
The continuing “nagging mystery” surrounding his existence, reached a higher troubling point when Paul and his second wife Michelle were to become parents, and needed his medical history. The ordeal was no longer just about him, and would include his newborn daughter Emma Faith. Paul took a DNA test-- if he wasn’t Paul Fronczak, who was he?

In Part II-- Paul Fronczak’s story was picked up by the media on April 25, 2013. The story was presented by multi-award winning journalist George Knapp who broke the famous story of “USAF Area 51”. Hundreds of messages and tips flooded in. In addition, Paul was later interviewed by Barbara Walters for the television program 20/20. New terminology was learned: NPE- (Non-Paternity Event) – ULP- (Unidentified Living Person). Each year over 135,000 children are adopted and 400,000 are in Foster Care. Paul was contacted by the FBI, and learned that boxes of files for the Fronczak case had been slated to be shredded, but were remarkably found in a storage room, the case was reopened in August 2013.
The book highlighted the possibilities for identification through DNA testing and the dedicated efforts of genetic genealogists that donated hundreds of research hours on his case. As Fronczak became consumed by the search for his truth, his personal life was impacted in unexpected ways as he gained profound insight regarding the unnatural act of child abandonment, forgiveness, and living an authentic life. ~ With appreciation to Howard Books via NetGalley for the DRC for the purpose of review.

I had previously read An Invisible Thread, another memoir co-written by Alex Tresniowski. Tresniowski is a skilled writer so I was surprised when I didn't connect with this story to the same degree. However, Paul Fronczak's story is one of mistaken identity and inherent in this identity crisis is a lack of self-awareness. I suspect Tresniowski captured Fronczak's voice, unfortunately, many of the events that occurred are relatively recent so the book suffers from a lack of reflection on Fronczak's part. At times, the memoir reads like investigative journalism with little emotional resonance. Fronczak admits he has not "put in the work" to process these major events and this impacts the book. At times, the memoir delves into other stories entirely - the genealogists and volunteers helping him research, the DNA behind their work, and the stories of distant cousins he discovers along the way. There is a fascinating story at the heart of this book - one that is heart-wrenching, complex, tragic and, at times, inspiring - but at times it feels as if Fronczak rushed to put the events in writing without taking the time to react. There are some factual life changes that he reports on, but it can be hard to connect to the story without understanding any of the inner changes that occurred.

In 1964, newborn Paul Fronczak was taken from the hospital by a woman dressed like a nurse. Nearly two years later, a baby boy was found abandoned outside a department store several states away. Based on a photograph of Paul, it was determined that the abandoned baby was Paul. As an adult reflecting on his childhood, Paul felt like an outsider, as if something was missing. When he talked his parents into taking a DNA test, he knew for sure, he was not the baby kidnapped from the hospital. What follows is an incredible search to uncover who is really is and what happened to baby Paul.

Truth is definitely stranger than fiction. This story outlines a set of crazy, nearly unbelievable circumstances. Although I thought the book was a bit repetitive – each chapter repeated background facts and emotional upheaval – it certainly kept my attention. I would love to know what happens to Paul next – I’ll definitely be following his facebook page. Overall, well worth picking up.

The foundling is a true story about a boy lost at childhood and connected to a kidnapping. At first I was very engaged because I'd never heard his story, but then the book turns into a search through his past and continues on that path until the end.

I had to know what was going to happen. I wasn't happy with many of Paul's choices, but understand how one needs to know their origins. Mostly, I felt like he wasn't in tune with what was right there in front of him. I agreed with his wife in that he was not necessarily wasting his time, but that it would probably never come to an end and there would always be questions.

4**** and glad to have read it...

Pauls story of trying to find his birth family is a compelling read and you feel like you are on the journey with him, You want everything to turn out right for him but of course this is real life and it doesn't always work out that way. The cost to his family life and indeed his adoptive parents was great but he felt that it was worth it. He is still searching for answers and probably always will, I wish you luck n your quest Paul and thank you for sharing it with us.