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New reviews coming soon! I'll be importing my work from the past two years, but in the meantime,
I'm reclaiming my small place on the web.

Sunday, June 29, 2008

Memoir Book Review

Switched at Birth
By Frederick J. George
ISBN-10: 0615145027
Review by Heather Froeschl



A memoir with a twist, “Switched at Birth: My Life in Someone Else's World” by Frederick J. George examines the coincidences of life. Placed in the wrong bassinet in the hospital, Frederick didn’t confirm the switch until he was 57, and the parents he had grown up with were already passed on; his birth mother the only parent left to embrace in this deeply moving time.

His father had always been suspicious, even accusing Frederick’s mother of having had an affair. He always looked a little different than his siblings in family photos, and had slightly different interests, but Fred had tried to fit in. Fate also tried, making efforts to step in, crossing the paths of both boys and their families over the years. Fred’s brother was even friends with the switched boy, Jim. Ironic is the word that comes to mind, almost unbelievable is the tale.

Fred shares the histories of both of his families and how he came to understand them. He opens up, telling readers of his relationship with his birth mother, as it began so much later than it possibly should have.

The writing is reminiscent of the passed down family legend, purely memoir. An interesting book about a twist of fate.

1 comment:

  1. Sounds like quite a story, heartbreaking at the life that could have been but wasn't due to one simple accident. The sense of loss and feeling out of place and for Fred's parents to have never found out the truth. It's quite sad but thanks for writing about this as I love reading memoirs and I'll definitely be on the hunt for this one now.

    Actually, speaking of memoirs, I've just finished reading one that you may be interested in yourself. It's called "What Peace There May Be" by Susanna Barlow. It's a memoir of her life as a child living in a household where polygamy was accepted. What I liked most about it was that it was written from her view point as a child rather than her looking back. It too is an incredibly sad story as Susanna struggles to grow up normal somewhere between family loyalty and knowing in her heart what is wrong. Anyway, thought you might be interested.

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