Misbegotten

by Josephine Goldman

It's the 1960s and seventeen-year-old Rose falls hard for David, a rebel with a criminal record. His bad-boy charm soon overwhelms her...resulting in a shocking pregnancy. Unable to take responsibility for his actions, David joins the Marines and disappears. Rose tries to stay on track, but life in the Milwaukee projects is tough. Adoption seems like the best choice for both her and her baby—and the hardest decision Rose will ever make. Time passes. A child grows to an adult. Now twenty years old, Ann never knew why her birth parents gave her up. Did they care? Was she nothing but an inconvenience? The questions were always there, despite being raised in a loving household by caring adoptive parents. Meanwhile, Ann's biological mother marries and has two more children. Her deadbeat biological father rises through the military to reach a rank of power and importance. And a mother and child search for each other—neither knowing what emotions their meeting might ignite. A stirring and emotional debut novel, Misbegotten explores the struggles, joys, and imperfections of a mother and her daughter over thirty remarkable years.

292 pages, Paperback

Published October 30, 2015

Reviews

[Brenda H]

It's 1961 and 17 year old Rose is in trouble. She fell for the high school bad boy and now she's pregnant. When she tells her boyfriend, he lets her know in no uncertain terms that he's not interested and this is her problem.

Rose has plans - she wants to finish high school and go on to secretarial school. An unwanted pregnancy doesn't fit with her vision of the future. Her family is barely making ends meet and another mouth to feed is not an option. Rose and her mother go to health services and arrange to have the baby adopted.

Rose's daughter, Ann Marie is adopted by a wonderful, caring family who gives her a great childhood and a happy life. When she has a health scare, she begins to consider the possibility of finding her birth parents.

The story is good overall but nothing very exciting. The reader does not get invested in the characters which was a problem for me.

Rating:3.25

[Sherry Porter]

Interesting

I gave this book a four because the topic, adoption intrigued me, however it was a slow read. I highly recommend people that are adopted or want to adopt read this book.

[Shirley Townsend]

Good First draft

The base story is good. It needs a lot more depth. A five year old keeping a diary in such detail is unlikely or more likely not likely at all. For such an emotional story the characters lacked depth.

[Elaine Augustine]

Storyline is flawed

I was really bothered with how the Marine Corps was portrayed. David would have never made it to the rank of general without education. I had a hard time with this non researched plot line.

[Kathleen D]

I would like to recommend Josephine Goldman's book, Misbegotten, to anyone who enjoys a good, heartwarming and informative story.
I highly recommend it to anyone with experience and knowledge of the adoption of children.
Unlike any book I have read on the subject, Misbegotten examines and illuminates the process of adoption from the point of view of the birth parents, the adoptive family and the child. It is both joyful and sad, but mainly it leaves us much wiser about a very important subject. Many thanks to you, Josephine.