Fortunate Son: The Story of Baby Boy Francis

by Brooks Eason

Julie Francis was a beautiful, wealthy socialite from Tulsa with a golden future. But during the fall semester of her freshman year of college, she learned she was pregnant. She was only 17.

Paul and Margaret Eason were a middle-class couple from Tupelo, Mississippi, who couldn't have children of their own. They had previously adopted a daughter, but they desperately wanted a son to complete their family.

Their worlds converged at a home for unwed mothers in New Orleans. The day Paul and Margaret took baby boy Scott Francis home, he became Brooks Eason.

Mother and son never saw each other again, but life has a way of coming full circle. Nearly 50 years later, Brooks's daughter Ann Lowrey learned she was pregnant during the fall semester of her sophomore year of college. She gave birth to a beautiful baby girl the following summer. Because it was 2004, not 1957, Ann Lowrey was able to keep and raise her baby. She named her Ada Brooks. On the day she was born, Brooks learned that he was Scott Francis when he was born.

FORTUNATE SON-The Story of Baby Boy Francis

is the amazing true story of Brooks's adoption, the wonderful life Paul and Margaret gave him, how times changed from when he was born until Ada Brooks was born, and how he learned that Julie was his birth mother.

Genres: Nonfiction

218 pages, Kindle Edition

Published November 6, 2019

Reviews

[Tom Wicker · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is more than a great story about adoption, family and fate. It's a series of stories strung together by a natural storyteller that draws you along from one to the next. It is a memoir of a "fortunate son" and a meditation on how society has treated and continues to treat its children and their mothers. It is by turns thought-provoking, humorous, poignant and joy-filled. It is as much a story of discernment as discovery -- and of ultimately finding grace in each person, occurrence and encounter.

Full disclosure: I know the author, but he is not a close friend. Indeed, I needed to read the book to catch up with what he's been up to the last few decades.

This is a gift to be unwrapped in the reading and enjoyed. Give it to yourself and you'll find that you'll want to share it with others.

[Laura · Rating 5 out of 5]

Pregnant girls were hidden in the 1950’s, most of them giving up their children at birth or shortly thereafter. This is the story of one such child. Paul Brooks Eason was born in New Orleans to a college student, and came to live with his adoptive parents and sister (also adopted).

Fast forward to 2004, Tupelo, Mississippi. Brooks’ father, now 82, receives a phone call from a lawyer in New Orleans who is looking for a man named Paul Eason, age 46. Apparently, there has been a nationwide search for the man that was adopted because he is potentially the heir to a fortune.

So begins Brooks’ journey to find out about his birth mother, and the wealthy family he was born into. He dropped his first name and is known by Brooks to friends, family and the clients who retain his services as a lawyer. He has done quite well for himself and is happy with his life both as a child in a loving family and as a grown man with a family of his own. He is intrigued by his newfound connection with his birth family.

Life has a way of repeating itself, and this family is no different. But the way they react is absolutely opposite from the way Ann Lowrey (Eason’s birth mother) and his daughter Ann Lowrey’s pregnancy was approached. His mother honestly had no choice but to give up her child. His daughter, made the choice to continue going to school, bring her daughter into the world and raise her as a single mother with the full support and love of her family.

The author takes us through a first hand account of history through the eyes of his adoptive family as well as the family he was born into. It is fascinating to hear details from 1886 to the present through the filter of someone who lived them and passed family stories down to each generation that follows. Honestly, it is like sitting down to dinner with my dad, listening about his childhood. Adding a human touch and warmth to experiences we’ve read about in history books is exactly what Eason has done to pull the reader in and hold you until the last pages of Fortunate Son.

DISCLOSURE OF MATERIAL CONNECTION: I have a material connection because I received a review copy from publicist Maryglenn McCombs in exchange for a fair and honest review. Copyright © 2020 Laura Hartman

[Steven Hinman · Rating 5 out of 5]

Interesting memories from the author! Contrast between 1950s and 2000s.

Interesting memories of the author's life, and story of how he discovered his birth mother. Also has a prequel to his latest story!