Welcome Home

OhMyHeart...this book should come with a pallet (not a box) of tissues.

My Top 5 (in no particular order)
The Take Back
Peace of Paper
Up By A Million
These Broken Stars
Ink Drips Black

Read it.

Families are unique ecosystems. They can change with each moment and they play an incredibly large role in a person's identity. The anthology Welcome Home, edited by Eric Smith, explores the topic of adoption through a multitude of diverse stories and characters that address the realities, fantasies, and emotions involved.

I could easily wax poetic with plenty of clichéd ideas, axioms, or phrases, such as it's not who you're related to by blood that makes a family but who is there for you to support and love you, but that would get old rather quickly and not help explain my thoughts on this anthology. Instead, I'll offer the following: no two stories were exactly alike, but they all helped to convey a similar message of love and acceptance. Some stories felt complete in their short form and others could easily be expanded to be part of a larger narrative. With a variety of perspectives about adoption and family presented throughout the collection via different genres, it offers opportunities to view the topic through a new lens.

I realize (and greatly appreciate) how tough the medium of a short story is and those included in this anthology are well-written and evoke emotion and thought during the brief time you're immersed in the world they offer; however, I did find that there were a few that incorporated some rather unique fantastical elements that could benefit from further development, as I got hung up with questions about some of the details, but the oddness of it didn't detract from the powerful messages being conveyed by the narrative. Regardless of your personal connection to the topic of adoption, these stories help to demonstrate that there is no right definition of a family, but family can be thought of as who we decide to surround ourselves with.

Overall, I'd give it a 5 out of 5 stars.

This was touching. I felt like I wanted to run out and join those families who take in people who have nowhere to call home.

I’m usually a fast reader. If I don’t finish a book within a week of picking it up, chances are I’m never going to. Either something grabs me from the beginning and I’m off, staying up until an unsavory time to get that last chapter in, or it doesn’t, and I just can’t bring myself to bother with it.

But then there are books like Welcome Home. Books that I have to put down, not because of any fault of prose or failure of plot but because they inspire me to think, and I need a moment before I can collect myself to start reading again. So it took me a rather long time before I could finish reading the ARC and settle down to write a review.

Even before the first story, before the introduction, Eric Smith gives us a sense of what he set out to do in his beautiful dedication:

“For those who’ve been found

And for those out alone,

For those still searching

And for those who’ve come home.”

Welcome Home is an anthology of short stories about adoption and family, love and abandonment, fear and hope. It features 29 authors writing in various styles that speak to their own experiences. This leads to a range of voices and formats, from the magical realism vibe of Tristina Wright’s “Jar of Broken Wishes:”

“Only Daisy could see the wishes. They were airy and light and different colors. Almost like fireflies all lit up blue and pink and green.”

to Randy Ribay’s typical coffee-shop meet in “The Snow-Covered Sidewalk”:

“‘Um,’ he says, mussing his hair again. ‘You don’t have to leave. We can share the table.'”

In addition to these, there were blog-styled stories, fantasy and sci-fi stories, stories that took place in the past and stories that took place in the future. No matter the author or genre, the story never failed to pull me into its universe. The writing was varied but rarely felt disjointed. There were a few times I felt the limits of a short story, and I felt an idea could have been developed further for comprehension’s sake. But there were also times I wanted an idea to be developed further out of pure selfishness. I wasn’t ready to part with the characters just yet; their stories weren’t over. I’d love to see some of these author’s ideas expanded upon or even made into a full-length narrative.

Without hesitation, this book earns a five out of five. I don’t want to get too hackneyed with this last bit, but I really do believe Welcome Home succeeds in conveying the meaning and value of all families, no matter what they’re composed of.

I have no personal experience of adoption but these stories touched my heart and caused me to shed many tears. So many different interpretations of the theme, all fascinating. I think my favourite story is Empty Lens, but it's a very hard decision to make as there are so many that I loved. Great anthology for dipping into but make sure you have your tissues handy if you are an empathetic reader!

WELCOME HOME is an anthology of short stories ranging from contemporary to sci-fi that deal with the pain, complications, and joys of adoption. The stories include a mix of POVs: children dealing with being adopted and parents dealing with giving children up for adoption.

This was an anthology I knew I wanted to read. My older sister is adopted and I’ve seen first hand the confusion and frustration that sometimes goes with being adopted. This book touched on all of those basis and it was genuinely good read. I felt like it took me forever to finish it because I would have to set it down after a few stories. While there are some sci-fi stories (like the parents who are stuck in 1985), there are a few contemporary stories that hit me hard. This anthology takes a good, hard look at blended families, foster care, and the adoption process. I appreciated that it showed the good side of adoption- the stories we want to see where everyone gets the family they wanted- but I’m also thankful that they showed the bad side of adoption- feeling cut off from your culture and the fact that sometimes “forever families” aren’t forever.

There are trigger warning associated with this text. Child abuse is at the front in center in several stories (particularly in SALVATION by Shannon Gibney). EMPTY LENSE by Tameka Mullins has a trigger warning for transphobia. It’s a throw away line that I plan to email the publisher about. The MC talks about meeting a transgirl and says “She is growing into her pretty but I can still see the boy in her.” The line is completely unnecessary.

While I do recommend this anthology, do be aware of it’s sometimes heavy subject matter.

This was a very sweet little book of short stories, I enjoyed it very much.

The collection started with a bang. Adi's story about a teen in Mexico, whose parents are stuck in 1985 was astounding. So full of heart and teenage feelings. I was crying by the end. I was so pleasantly surprised by how different all the stories are, how many facets of life they shine on. From contemporary to magical realism to fantasy, to mystery, they show the reality of adoption in its many iterations. There were a couple of stories that were too dark and gruesome to me though. There was child abuse, and because of some language, I'm hesitant to share it with a few people I'd been anticipating sharing it with (kids are more middle grade age, rather than YA), but all in all, I loved this anthology and will for sure buy the book and share it widely.

A collection of stories from contemporary to science-fiction all connected by adoptions. Families created through love, the pain of giving up a child, and the struggle of trying to find the right family are all covered.

Like most anthologies there were good stories and bad ones. Several had strong enough plots and characters to be full books. Some were barely holding on for the few pages they got. That said the anthology was strong together. Adoption isn’t a subject I see covered in a lot of young adult novels and with the wealth of different stories here it really is a shame.

While many of the stories focus explicitly on adoption and the bonds it creates, some stories follow other plotlines just centering on adopted characters. An adopted girl who has super powers etc. It’s incredibly diverse including POC characters and LGBT+ characters all while keeping the focus on adoption.

There are treasures in this book, but there are just as many stories that I feel were sort of flops. It’s definitely a worthy pick up for someone who wants to see adopted characters in fiction. I only wish some of these stories would see full length adaptations featuring the adopted characters. All in all, it’s a decent read but the stories are too mixed for it to be amazing.

Here are the stories that really stood out for me: Webbed by Julie Esbaugh, These Broken Stars by C.J. Redwine, Tunneling Through by Shannon Parker, A Lesson in Biology by Sammy Nickalls.

This was an amazing collection of stories that portrays adoption from a wide range of voices. I was truly touched reading this anthology.

I didn't realize this was an anthology, but I did enjoy the majority of the stories. A nice mix of styles and sentiments. Overall, a very good read.

While I’m sure there are YA books with fostered/adopted main characters, I haven’t read…any, I think. So I was delighted to find that a stellar group of YA authors was coming together for this anthology. The realm of fostering and adoption has become much more personal for my family in the past few years. Through that journey, I’ve learned a lot about unthinkable living conditions, long-term problems, and new kinds of love.

Welcome Home shines a light on the struggles and triumphs of people in similar (fictional) journeys.

Three major elements of diversity that I respect in Welcome Home: the authors, the writing, and the stories.

The authors seem to be a good mix of gender, ethnicity, experience, etc. Most of them have a personal connection to adoption/fostering, although not all disclose or hint at that in their bios, so I can’t be sure.

The writing covers a range of genres, including fantasy, sci-fi, and thriller, in addition to contemporary. I was happy to see that the authors exercised creativity and freedom in bringing ideas of love and family to many worlds.

Finally, and most importantly to me, the stories. This anthology tells a wide variety of stories. Bad adoptions, good families, bio mothers, angsty teens, accomplished soldiers, and more. The world is full of people with stories about the foster system and each of those stories is different. Welcome Home makes a happy dent in representing those stories in literature.

This meaningful anthology takes readers on an emotional journey with gifted writers, as it explores complex adoption circumstances, including different skin colours, cultures, etc.

29 short stories on adoption. Love that there was representation of all kinds from race to sexuality, adoption to fostering, magical and paranormal elements, there really is a story for everyone in this book. I read four short stories a day and picked my favorite to list in my status update. One time I picked three because I just could not narrow it down. My favorites are listed in my status updates on Goodreads. Great variety of authors from some I have read before and others that are completely new to me.

This is a beautiful and perfect collection of stories for those that struggle with feeling like they truly belong. I am still processing everything, but it made me want to open my arms and my home to those without one. Great stories.

A fantastic collection of stories about adoption, love and family. I thought the mix of genres was incredible- there's something to draw in everyone and I even found myself enjoying genres I wouldn't usually pick up because they were so well written. My personal favourite was Adi Alsaid's magical realism story but there were several that I will go back and reread.

My only issue- which I would knock a star off of- was the transphobic language in Empty Lens by Tameka Mullins and I hope this has been changed for publication.

Actual rating: 3.5

I liked the idea behind this collection more than I liked the collection. Short stories about adoption, all of them with happy endings? Yes please. But the execution let me down a little, I feel like most of the stories were rushed and ended abruptly. It was more of a glimpse into a story, then a story itself. There’s a lot of interesting glimpses into potentially beautiful stories, making me wish there was at least a little bit more.
What was absolutely enjoyable though was the abundance of different writing styles displayed. Each author brings something different to this anthology, therefore making it special.
I’m really torn between recommending this book or not, it all depends on what you enjoy in a book? If you want plot or character development, I’m sad to say that there isn’t enough material for that part to shine. If you’re a fan of writing styles, this one is the perfect book to enjoy that.

This was wonderful. Eric Smith has brought together talented writers with the skills to explore the wide range of circumstances and emotions surrounding adoption, resulting in something truly special. I was engaged from start to finish. A must read.