I just read this book. Ten years ago, I traveled in the area of China that is covered in the book. However, I have no experience with adopting a Chinese child.I did not read the slip cover material, and I read this story as being mainly fiction, but a fiction built upon the rich and varied texture of a great, complex people and nation. As noted by others, even the smells of China make it into the story in a way that is real to those of us who've been there.There is no question that there are some flaws in the reach and premise of the story, but it grabbed me, and it surprised me, and I enjoyed it immensely as a superior work of fiction.