Growing up, my parents would take me and my brother to see a movie on Thanksgiving evening. You know, after the turkey was consumed and dishes were washed. There's almost always some movie worth seeing on Thanksgiving weekend because the movie people are smart enough to release the big hits when families have time off from work! This year is no exception, of course.

Today the movie August Rush is being released in theaters. I first saw the preview commercial about a week and a half ago. And I sobbed all over myself. Because of... more

I'm a pretty boring person. Being on bed rest only further assures that I will be at home, on the couch, at nine o'clock on this Saturday evening. However, a recent blurb article has just determined what I will be watching on my television (hopefully with a child fast asleep in his bed). "Facing Reality: Choices" will premiere on the Fox News Channel at 9 o'clock tomorrow evening. (Saturday, October 26)

What's it... more

I decided to read Then She Found Me, a novel by Elinor Lipman, after I found out that it was being turned into a movie starring Bette Midler and Helen Hunt. I found it at our library, brought it home and stared at it for awhile. If it was being turned into a movie, well, what did that mean? Was it just that good... more

I don't often hold much hope for novels written about the birth parent experience. Fiction leaves room for exaggeration and personal opinion and so I try to go into reading with an open mind. My mind was blown by B-Mother by Maureen O'Brien (2007). While, in the end, some loose ends tie up too neatly, I think this is one of the best fictional books I've read on adoption and the birth parent experience.

The main character,... more

I'm not usually a glutton for punishment. I usually avoid any movies on Lifetime. They aren't normally uplifting nor do they often portray women in ways that I think promote strength and individuality. (That said, Fried Green Tomatoes is on Thursday evening!) However, I had a moment of weakness in these last few weeks before the season premieres begin on the normal networks. Nothing was on television on Tuesday evening. The title of the movie caught my eye. So I selected it, started watching it and was immediately drawn into the story.

"... more

Helen Hunt. Bette Midler. Colin Firth. Matthew Broderick. That's a big name cast! "Then She Found Me" piqued my interest, especially after yesterday's adoption movie news. Nothing against Jennifer Garner but the storyline of "Juno" leaves much to be desired. Is there hope for this movie? Let's look at the general synopsis, shall we?

A New York schoolteacher (Hunt) hits a midlife crisis when, in quick succession, her husband leaves,... more

I'm not usually a fan of the way adoption is portrayed in movies. Sensationalized, dramatized and filled with stereotypes, I usually feel like banging my head against the wall, retching or a combination of both before the movie even hits the mid-point. Unfortunately, a new movie set to hit theaters this holiday season doesn't seem to be looking any better than the normal Lifetime variety. I'm prepared to be fully annoyed.

The movie, Juno, is about a sixteen year old mother-to-be facing an unplanned pregnancy... more

As my faithful readers know, I've been reviewing one book per month throughout this calendar year. The challenge, of course, is to find books about adoption that focus on the birth parent experience or, speaking of a novel, that are written from the birth parent perspective. I've made exceptions for novels that were written from the adoptee perspective as long as they contained enough birth parent involvement. The August-into-September chapter-by-chapter review of Lifegivers leaves me with nothing left on my list.

And so, I implore my readers:... more

After fourteen chapters of in depth review, we've finally finished ... more

In the last chapter of ... more