Faces of Hope: Babies Born on 9/11

by Christine Pisera Naman

September 11, 2001, will forever be etched into our memories as a day of tragedy and despair. Yet, in spite of the fact that so many lives were lost in an instant, there is hope for our future. It lives in the innocence and beauty of newborn babies; proof that life is a circle and that hope always exists, even in the direst of circumstances. In this delightful book, Christine Pisera Naman, whose son Trevor was born on that fateful day, has gathered together striking black-and-white photos of her child and forty-nine other babies who share the same birthday. Gathered from each of the fifty states in the union, these shining faces give hope to our nation as its citizens reflect on the anniversary of September 11. With simple eloquence, the author shares two wishes that she has for each little one, such Through the smiling photos of these precious babies, readers will remember that, even in tragedy, there is always a ray of sunshine. With new life, there is always hope. A portion of the proceeds from this book will be donated the Twin Towers Orphan Fund Charity.

104 pages, Paperback

First published September 1, 2002

About the author

Bestselling author Christine Pisera Naman is a wife to a beautiful man named Peter and a mother to three fantastic kids named Jason, Natalie and Trevor. In her free time, she enjoys crocheting, which she does poorly; painting, again poorly; and volunteering at her local hospital, which she hopes she does well. She is the author of the Faces of Hope series of books that are now housed in the 9/11 Memorial Museum in New York City. Her other works include Caterpillar Kisses, Christmas Lights, The Novena and The Believers. About Natalie is her heart poured onto paper

Reviews

[DelGal · Rating 2 out of 5]

The concept behind this book is wonderful, a tribute from a mother who gave birth on Sept 11th, such a tragic day, that depicts one child from each of the 50 states who was also born on the same day. I am, however, disappointed with a few things in this book, that if it were put together a little better, could have made the book wonderful. For example, the photos are in black and white, I would think that a tribute on hope and life despite terrible tragedy deserves a bit of color instead of the drab black and white presented. Also, and more importantly, are the inspiring lines of hope that accompanied each child's picture. While the intent to wish each child hope for the future is lovely, some of the lines were ridiculously stupid. For instance, "I hope you jump in rain puddles," "I hope you plant a flower in a cup and watch it grow," "I hope you make faces into the school bus window" and "I hope you wear pajamas with feet in them." I understand the intent behind the lines, but couldn't the author think of anything more suitable, like perhaps wishing the children peace, understanding and great health for the future? I'm sad to say that although this book has a great concept, and I'm glad it was created despite the flaws, it fell short and could have been a lot better.

[Susan · Rating 3 out of 5]

As a parent of a child with a Sept. 11 birthday, one of these years she is going to find out that the day that she celebrates is a day that the nation considers a tragedy. I like this book as a tool for framing her life as part of a vision of hope.

The two things that I don't particularly like about this book are that (1) there isn't much to it. It's 50 babies (one for each state), each with one or two simple sentences of things the author wishes for them on the opposite page. It's just... pretty basic.

The second is that at a glance, this book is incredibly White. Our country is racially very diverse, but you'd never know it from paging quickly through this book. Really, Ms. Naman? You couldn't find a way to be more representative than this?

[Pepper Gerstner · Rating 5 out of 5]

Kudos to the mom who wrote this...what an uplifting book.
Her acknowledgements to the mothers and children at the very beginning was beautiful and well written!

[Mary Kay · Rating 3 out of 5]

"On a day when life was taken, life needed to be given" A photo memory book of babies born to give hope to a grieving world.