"An Amazing Discovery for Adopted Children"
by Sherrie Eldridge

I am honored to have received a copy of this book for review.  I feel very inadequate to do it justice with my words.  But, I will try.....

Forever Fingerprints is one of those  books that you don't just read, you FEEL.  Author Sherrie Eldridge uses an every day occurance (a relative's pregnancy) to teach an extraordinary lesson (where adopted children are  before they are born).  If you are an adoptive parent, then you may have been asked questions such as "Where did I come  from?" or "Why didn't I grow in your tummy, Mommy?"  Sharing this book with your young child (preschool through elementary, in my opinion) is a fantastic springboard for further discussion.  Not only will this book help you to talk to your child about their thoughts and feelings, but it will also help you to show your child how much you love them, and give them a means of honoring their past.

The main character in this book, a little girl named Lucie, is adopted.  One day, her Aunt Grace comes for a visit and shares some special news~ there is a baby growing in her tummy.  Lucie was amazed at how big Aunt Grace's tummy was, and even more amazed when she felt the baby move!  However, when Lucie went to bed that night, many questions started swirling around in her head......Whose tummy did she grow in?  Did she do something to make her birthparents give her up?  Whose fingers felt her tapping on their tummy before she was born?  Lucie's parents use the opportunity to reassure her that she is loved and to discuss her birth parents.  Then, they explain about fingerprints and how each person is very unique~ and the most important, exciting thing~ our fingerprints are formed while we are in our mother's womb (so even though we may be adopted, we have that special bond that ties us to our birthparents). 

The story is simple and straightforward.  The illustrations (by Rob Williams) are colorful and fun.  The book also contains "Parent Tools & Activities" as well as further information on fingerprints. 

One of my favorite things about this  book (and definitely Gracie's) was the fact that, included with the book, is a special piece of paper and a stamp pad, so that you can make prints of your fingers.  Gracie had an absolute blast with this!  This piece of paper will be a wonderful addition to her keepsake book (and I made a copy of it, so that when Ian is older we might share this story with him as well).  Here's Gracie's:

Gracie loved this!  I was surprised this evening, when she came up with another idea, as a direct result of this book:

Why stop with the fingerprints when you can do your whole hand?!  I drew the heart in the middle, and she came up with the family idea on her own.  Isn't that sweet?

Great story, fantastic illustrations, wonderful message, perfect opportunity.
Forever Fingerprints is a book that should be shared with every adopted child. 

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Some exciting news about this book:
If you are an adoptee or have an adopted child, then this might be something that will be of interest to you (I know it is to me!)  The publisher of this book, Carrie Kitze of EMK Press, is an adoptive parent herself.  She is making the following fantastic offer in honor of National Adoption Day:

We would like to invite you to join us and other members of the adoption triad to read Forever Fingerprints to help celebrate the incredible act of adoption, on Saturday, November 17th, National Adoption Day 2007. (Sherrie and my daughter are reading together in Indianapolis at the Children's Museum.)

Here’s how it’s going to happen:
First, those interested should read the story of Forever Fingerprints….An Amazing Discovery for Adopted Children, free to read online for a limited time at www.emkpress.com/fingerprint.html
Second, set up a public reading of Forever Fingerprints at your local library, bookstore, house of worship, school, or adoption group meeting on November 17, 2007, National Adoption Day. Head here to sign up to read and login your contact details and the location and time of your reading:
www.emkpress.com/fingerprintreading.html

After signing up and committing to read, you won’t believe what Carrie (that's me) will send you:

1. A complimentary, autographed copy of Forever Fingerprints for your enjoyment
2. Another complimentary copy to donate to the place you are reading.
3. A simple press kit to help publicize your event including a press release to send to your local newspaper,
4. Copies of “Fingerprint Memory Sheets” for children to actually make a forever fingerprint after your
reading (great for Life Books or framing).
5. Several small inkpads with “Forever Fingerprints” on them to be used during the fingerprint activity.
And some other cool stuff and ideas to make your reading an exciting and fun time for all your listeners...

It’s going to be wonderful to have people of all ages reading in cities and towns all across the country! What fun to have a positive story of adoption in the paper for a change. Use your imagination if you don’t have or can’t use your local library, the reading could be done at your favorite bookstore, church, or school. Any questions? email me at carriekitze@emkpress.com

*If you decide to do this, great!  Please tell Carrie that you found the information on my blog~ thanks!

Share Your Thoughts

Aug. 14, 2007 - Untitled Comment

Posted by mamaof3

How precious - love it. Interesting that she named you guys with your first name - sometimes I'm not sure Sarah remembers what ours is...LOL - Adorable pictures - very creative! - Charity

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Aug. 14, 2007 - Untitled Comment

Posted by SimpleFolk

How precious! Gracie's art work brought tears to my eyes. I do hope that someday I too will have this miracle of adoption. :o)

Amy

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Aug. 15, 2007 - What a great idea

Posted by bubbebobbie

Your daughter is so creative great imagination!
I will pass this on to Adoptive friends of mine.
Because of Jesus, Bobbie

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Aug. 17, 2007 - Untitled Comment

Posted by SandBetweenMyToes

Gracie's picture is adorable. What a good imagination.
The book sounds really good. I shared your review with our adoption support group--I hope that was okay! I will probably purchase it. Honestly, I felt very hesitant and fearful when I read about it. Strange. We talk about birthmothers and those subjects very frequently here. I don't know if I've ever shared with you that we searched for and found Marissa's birthmother almost 2 years ago. Marissa was very emotional, upset, needy concerning her birthmother. We found her (in the U.S.--only about 6 hours from our home). Marissa has received a few letters from her, but most importantly, a picture. She had a very strong need to know what her BM looked like. She is at peace with it now, and doesn't talk about her a lot anymore. I know there are bound to be issues and feelings still there, and I may be afraid to stir them, especially when I don't know if she can identify them and if she is willing to express them. They seem to come in stages. She'll go for a long time without any concern for it. Then she'll pull out all the pictures she has for 2 or 3 nights and look at them. Anyway, we have a few children's adoption books around here, and that sounds like a great one to add. I need to spend more time reading them to Daniella, too.
Thanks for all your work.
Letitia

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