Articles written about the adoption experience – read to learn more.
By Teesta Bhola-Shah For many families, adoption is presented as a beautiful, uncomplicated story about love. But for my own mother, Devi Bhola, the adoption process revealed something far more uncomfortable: a system deeply shaped by racism, like many things in our society. During a candid interview about our family’s experience adopting my younger brother,…
By Teesta Bhola-Shah When people hear the word adoption, they usually picture a happy ending. A baby comes home, a family is complete, everyone smiles in the courtroom photo, and that’s the story. But after sitting down and interviewing my mom about my younger brother Jay’s adoption, I realized how much people do not see…
In a story as personal and emotionally layered as A Mosquito in the Ear, the role of a literary agent is to refine language and shape pacing throughout the story, but also to preserve what is important and what isn’t. For Alessandra Sternfeld, senior agent at am-book, the responsibility was to protect Andrea Ferraris’s story…
By Teesta Bhola-Shah A Mosquito in the Ear is not your typical coming-of-age story. Told through the lens of a graphic novel, it follows the journey of one family’s international adoption experience, tracing the story of a young girl from India into a new family, and the challenges and connections that unfold along the way.…
For Andrea Ferraris, storytelling has never been a choice, it has always been instinct. Long before his story A Mosquito in the Ear became an internationally recognized graphic novel and film, it was his family’s personal experience, one that Ferraris felt compelled to capture in the only way he knew how.
For Andrea Ferraris, adoption has had a huge impact on his life. In his graphic novel A Mosquito in the Ear, the Italian author captures how that single word changed his familiar world, pulling him and his wife Daniela into a long, uncertain journey filled with paperwork and waiting for a child they had yet…
By Teesta Bhola-Shah For much of the twentieth century, adoption in America followed a familiar pattern. Agencies facilitated placements, birth records were kept private, and contact between biological and adoptive families was rare. Today, that system looks very different. Through decades of firsthand experience, Richard Pearlman has watched adoption evolve from a largely closed process…
In a world where so many stories disappear with time, the Adoption Chronicles Project exists to make sure adoption stories are not forgotten. Founded by Richard Pearlman, the project is built on one central idea: to chronicle the modern era of adoption before its voices fade away. When explaining the project, Pearlman starts with the…
By Teesta Bhola-Shah Richard Pearlman does not describe his career as something he carefully mapped out from the beginning. Instead, his path into adoption work began almost by accident. “I inadvertently became involved in the field of adoption in the early 1980s,” he explains, reflecting on a professional journey that spans more than four decades…
A while back, I started MyAdoptionStories to talk about adoption from a personal perspective, especially because of my adopted brother. Early on, my research included learning about the Indian Child Welfare Act (ICWA) of 1978, which is a policy that sets standards for Native American adoption. When I started researching this act, I realized there…
Adopting a child is a complicated experience for everyone who goes through the process. Let’s discuss special needs adoption.
What a year 2025 has been! In 2025, while adoption wasn’t a topic that many people had on the forefront of their minds, some real changes occurred behind the scenes. Whether you’re adoptee, adoptive family, birth parent, or just curious about adoption, there’s so much to look back on and be proud of. Let’s dive…
By Teesta Bhola-Shah Before adoptive parent Ria Patel ever became a mother, she was already working to help children. Her first job after earning her Master’s degree was with the Paul Hamlyn Foundation, a philanthropic organization in India that funds community and social projects. One of their most meaningful missions, she said, was building a…
When it comes to adoption, every family’s story starts from the same place: love. But the way that story unfolds can look very different depending on where you live. We interviewed mother Ria Patel, who adopted her daughter Zahra through the Indian adoption system, about her experiences.
Long before Ria Patel became a mother, she spent her weekends surrounded by the soft hum of lullabies, the cries of babies, and the quiet sound of hope echoing through the hallways of Palna, a children’s home in Delhi.
By Teesta Bhola-Shah When we interviewed Gina Iyer, I immediately noticed how full of energy she was. Adoption can be a serious topic, but it can be filled with funny moments too. Gina was adopted in the United States when she was four and a half and later moved to India with her mother after…
By Teesta Bhola-Shah Adoption can mean many different things for different people — complexity, love, loss, anger, family. For adoptee Gina Iyer, it has meant all of these things and more. Born in the United States and raised in India, Gina’s story crosses many continents and cultures. We interviewed Gina about her life and perspectives…
By Teesta Bhola-Shah Adoption is often a very difficult process for everyone involved. But the way to get through it is with patience and love, says Gina Iyer. Gina was adopted as a child and adopted one of her children when she grew up, so she has lots of experience with the process. When we…
We interviewed AdoptTogether liaison and mother Holly Clark about her adoption story. Read about it here!
There are many misconceptions, stereotypes, and negative perceptions people have around adoption. But how do we combat these stereotypes? It begins with purposefully using the right language when we talk about adoption.
Adoption is something most people hear about, but not many realize just how expensive it can be. With the average adoption costing around $50,000, the process can feel impossible before it even begins. That’s why AdoptTogether, a nonprofit crowdfunding platform, was created: to help make adoption a reality for families everywhere.
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