Complete Idiot's Guide to Adoption (The Complete Idiot's Guide)
The byzantine process of applying for adoption can leave even the best and the brightest feeling like an idiot. Fear not. Chris Adamec, coauthor of theEncyclopedia of Adoptionand mother of an adopted child (plus two biological kids), has survived the process, truly believes in it, and passes along everything she's learned in more than 15 years of writing on the subject--all in a warm, encouraging style.The Complete Idiot's Guide to Adoptionbegins with two chapters designed to help readers determine their adoption readiness by describing lifestyle changes and typical costs as well as offering a smart reality check in the form of a self-evaluation. The next section provides excellent information on adoption arrangers (agencies, lawyers, private individuals), adoption finances, laws and rights from state to state, and the increasingly popular international adoption scene.  Then Adamec gets into the nitty-gritty of the actual adoption process, such as going through the dreaded home study (an evaluation of the potential adoptive family's lifestyle), dealing with birth mothers, coping with the challenges of raising adopted children, and, finally, facing a child's desire to search for his or her birth parents. An extra-large reference section includes adoption agencies, organizations, attorneys, parent groups, and more. Throughout the book, Adamec offers "real life snapshots" (true stories about different stages of the adoption process), helpful definitions of "adopterms," family-building tips, easy-to-understand charts, and relevant statistics--all to help potential adoptive parents arm themselves with multiple winning strategies.The Complete Idiot's Guide to Adoptionis an excellent primer that should instill readers with enough confidence to drop their "idiot" badge.--Liane Thomas