Foster Mom: A Journey of Self-Discovery

by Francine Hardaway

Middle-aged, successful, Francine and her physician husband accidentally get involved with an inner city family whose life is ruined by drugs. Suicide, death and disappointment overwhelm their optimism.Despite their best efforts, they achieve only modest success with two of the children-a teen-age boy who has attachment disorder and becomes an addict himself, and a younger girl who acts out to get attention. A probing look at the foster care system, the effects of crack addiction, the influence of intervention at various stages of a child's life, and the failure of the liberal ideal.

152 pages, Paperback

First published March 18, 2004

Reviews

[Jean Brazil · Rating 4 out of 5]

Well written story that was sad and frustrating. A woman tries to help a family that somehow manages to escape all of her efforts to help them. Makes you wonder at the value of nature vs. nurture, or at least the need to provide assistance early.