National Adoption Month
Explore Books about Adoptive and Foster Families
For National Adoption Month, we’re featuring titles that highlight the many ways families grow. Read historical fiction about early 20th-century "orphan trains," share the struggles of children navigating the foster care system, and celebrate found family. Our vocabulary lists will ensure you get the most out of these thought-provoking and moving stories.
Half a World AwayTroubled eleven-year-old Jaden and his parents journey to Kazakhstan to adopt a baby.
Little Fires EverywhereA NovelShaker Heights seems like an idyllic suburb, but tensions between the conventional Richardson family and their mysterious new tenant come to a head during a custody dispute that divides the town.
Far from the TreeIn this National Book Award-winning novel, three siblings raised in different households attempt to forge relationships with one another.
Orphan TrainChristina Baker Kline's historical novel follows two young women searching for a sense of belonging: Molly, a teen navigating the foster system in 2011, and Niamh, an Irish immigrant orphaned on the cusp of the Great Depression. Discover how their lives intersect as you learn these words from Orphan Train.
LocomotionIn this verse novel, eleven-year-old Lonnie reflects on his life in foster care.
For Black Girls Like MeA cross-country move, questions about her adoption and origins, and an incident of racism at school all have Makeda wondering where she belongs.
One for the MurphysAfter being placed with a foster family, 12-year-old Carley struggles to figure out where she belongs.
Insignificant Events in the Life of a CactusWhen her parents take jobs at a western theme park in Arizona, Aven gets caught up in a local mystery — and tries to adjust to a new school.
The Great Gilly HopkinsWhen eleven-year-old Galadriel Hopkins is sent to live with Maime Trotter in Maryland, the latest in a series of foster parents, she hatches a plan to run away to her biological mother in California.
Counting by 7sWillow Chance is an offbeat genius whose life is thrown off course when her adoptive parents die in a tragic accident.
The Season of Styx MaloneDuring one action-packed summer, brothers Caleb and Bobby Gene team up with smooth schemer Styx Malone in an attempt to escape their small town.
Beyond the Bright SeaAs a baby, Crow was discovered in a boat adrift at sea and raised on an isolated island off of Cape Cod. When twelve-year-old Crow spots a fire on a nearby island, once the home of a leper colony, she begins to investigate her own past.
Anne of Green GablesIn L.M. Montgomery's classic novel, imaginative and outspoken orphan Anne Shirley comes to the town of Avonlea to live with her new guardians.
Orbiting JupiterWhen twelve-year-old Maine farmboy Jackson Hurd meets his new foster brother, another middle schooler whom others see as trouble, he learns what it means to have someone's back.
The Inexplicable Logic of My LifeSal has always felt at home with his adoptive father, his beloved grandmother, and his best friend, Samantha. But as his senior year progresses, Sal struggles with volatile anger, unexpected tragedy, and changing relationships with friends and family.
HeidiIn this classic novel, an orphaned girl goes to live with her grandfather in the Swiss Alps. Learn these words from the translation by Elisabeth P. Stork.
The Book ThiefLiesel Meminger is a foster child living in Nazi Germany in 1939. Surrounded by violence, hardship, and war, Liesel is watched over by Death, who narrates her story.
The Bean TreesKingsolver's first novel tells the story of Taylor Greer, who leaves Kentucky and tries to make a life for herself and an orphaned Native American girl in Tucson, Arizona.
A Single ShardA Single Shard tells the story of a homeless orphan who helps a potter earn a royal commission in 12th-century Korea. Master these words that Linda Sue Park shaped into a Newbery Medal winner.
Ninth WardTwelve-year-old Lanesha and her caretaker, both endowed with supernatural gifts, must fight to survive when Hurricane Katrina hits New Orleans.
The Secret GardenWhen her parents die from an infectious outbreak in colonial India, ten-year-old Mary Lennox is sent to live with her uncle in England, where she discovers a garden that seems to make magical things happen. Read the full text here.
MatildaBrilliant Matilda Wormwood finds clever ways to get the best of her ignorant parents and the cruel headmistress of her school.
The War That Saved My LifeDuring World War II, ten-year-old Ada and her brother are sent from London to the countryside, where Ada experiences freedom and kindness for the first time.
Eight CousinsAfter her parents' death, Rose tries to find a home with various relatives, including her wealthy aunts, her eccentric uncle, and her many cousins.
The Mighty Heart of Sunny St. JamesAfter a heart transplant, Sunny St. James resolves to reinvent herself — but she must navigate complicated relationships with her new best friend and with the mother who abandoned her.
A Long Way HomeIn this memoir, Brierley, who was adopted by an Australian couple, describes his search for his family of origin in India.
Taking FlightFrom War Orphan to Star BallerinaIn this memoir, ballet dancer Michaela DePrince recounts her difficult childhood in Sierra Leone, her adoption by an American family, and her success as a ballerina.
What I CarryAfter bouncing from foster home to foster home, seventeen-year-old Muir moves in with a family that challenges her fiercely guarded independence.
The PinballsThree children strike up a friendship as they try to navigate life in foster care.
Pictures of Hollis WoodAfter many years in foster care, 12-year-old Hollis is determined to stay with her new caretaker, Josie — but she also misses the Regan family.
Ruby HollerTwins Dallas and Florida have been in and out of foster homes their entire lives—will they be able to trust their unconventional new guardians and find a home in Ruby Holler?
Orphan Train GirlA sixth-grader and an elderly woman discover they have something in common — years of moving from one foster family to another.
Three Little WordsA MemoirWhen her mother could not care for her, Ashley Rhodes-Courter moved between fourteen different foster homes over nine years. In this memoir, she retraces her heartbreaking journey.
Forever, or a Long, Long TimeFourth-grader Flora and her younger brother Julian believe they were never born because they have bounced around different homes and cannot believe that they will ever have a family whom they can live with and love forever.
BreakoutSeventeen-year-old Audelia Thigpen decides to drive away from her Los Angeles foster home, but gets stuck in a traffic jam, which gives her time to reflect on her own and others' lives.
WinterhouseIn this first book of the Winterhouse trilogy, eleven-year-old orphan Elizabeth Somers is sent by her aunt and uncle to a hotel in the snowy mountains, where she discovers magical mysteries and adventures with the other guests and owner.
The Ogress and the OrphansAfter an ogress is accused of abducting the children of Stone-in-the-Glen, a group of orphans try to save her and convince the townspeople of her good nature.
Maniac MageeAn orphan runs away from his guardians to search for a real home. On his journey, he performs feats of athleticism and confronts racial prejudice.
TumbleIn a small town in New Mexico, twelve-year-old Adela Ramírez wrestles with the decision to be adopted, especially when she finds out more about her biological father.
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