ISBNS:
Hardcover: 978-1-61153-096-4
Paperback: 978-1-61153-716-1
eBook: 978-1-61153-717-8
Large Print: 978-1-61153-718-5
Praise for The Missing Child:
In The Missing Child, O’Connor brings his journalistic curiosity and professional investigative skills to solve a mystery at the center of his own family history, the unknown circumstances surrounding the birth and adoption of his mother, Charlotte. Throughout the narrative arc of his genealogical detective work (substantially assisted by his sister, Charlene), O’Connor weaves memories of his mother and the people she (and he) called family. It is clear that O’Connor grew up with these people feeling loved and cared for, especially by his mother. He does not, however, shy away from describing challenges and complicated dynamics within his family, making the story feel authentic to the experiences of its readers. Without being overly sentimental, The Missing Child is, at its heart, a loving gift to Charlotte O’Connor.
—Cindy Waszak Geary, author, Ancestral Landscapes—Searching for my place in the world.
“The Missing Child is a fascinating family mystery and a loving portrait of an extraordinary American mother. A deeply engaging book.”
—David Zucchino, two-time Pulitzer Prize winning best-selling author of Wilmington’s Lie: The Murderous Coup of 1898 and the Rise of White Supremacy
“The Missing Child” is a poignant account of the stigma that children placed in the foster home/adoption world often carry through life. In Charlotte O’Connor’s story, however, we see how two adorable grandchildren lifted this shame from her.”
—Lee S. Varon, LICSW,a clinical social worker, former director of The Adoption Network in Boston and author of Adopting On Your Own and Single Adoptive Families. She has also written children’s books on adoption-related issues.
“O’Connor’s wonderful biography of his mother, follows in part a verse of an old hymn known to all. For Charlotte O’Connor once was lost, but thanks to her son, now is found. The Missing Child is a painful story of a hard childhood, a hard marriage, a hard struggle to raise two kids — but ultimately a story of triumph in the stability, success and devotion to her memory those children shared. Life was tough for Charlotte, but she made it through. In this book, grace is hers at last. How sweet the sound.”
—Jim Jenkins, retired editorial page columnist for The (Raleigh, NC) News & Observer.
“The Missing Child is for anyone who wants to understand how DNA testing (especially Ancestry DNA, 23andMe, and GEDMatch) sheds light on the intricate workings of 20th century American immigrant families.”
—Richard Teichgraeber Ph.D., professor emeritus of history, Tulane University.
An adored mother who struggled to get her family out of poverty, a closeknit family whose home was New Haven, but whose roots were Irish, and a secret his mother did not want revealed. Could the author solve the mystery of his family’s past? An intimate family saga and a genealogical search told by the author, a former journalist and professor, using his skills and perseverance to undercover a story he had no idea could be true. A page-turner I could not stop reading. Perfect for libraries and book clubs everyplace.
—Edith Netter, author, The House at Schumannstrasse 7
