The Family Nobody Wanted
by Helen Doss
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Book Summary Information
Author: Helen DossContributor: Mary Battenfeld
Edition: Paperback
Audio: English (Unknown); English (Original Language); English (Published)
Published: 2001-10-18
ISBN: 155553502X
Number of pages: 274
Publisher: Northeastern
Book Reviews of The Family Nobody Wanted
Book Review: A great book for kids and all ages
Summary: 5 Stars
Like many other people here, I stumbled upon this book at my neighborhood library when I was probably about 12 or 13 and decided to check out what looked like an interesting story. It turned out to be about a minister and his wife who, unable to have children of their own, adopt a large family of children, mostly of mixed race and a few with physical or emotional disabilities, during the 1940s and 1950s. The book was written by Helen Doss, the wife and mother of the family, in a very entertaining storyteller's style that is a fast, funny and entertaining read. Despite the fact that daddy Carl is a minister, there's very little of a "preachy" nature in the book and instead there's many lessons in tolerance, both racial and otherwise, as well as funny stories about the joys and chaos of having a large family. Even though I had little interest in motherhood or raising a family when I read the book, I thought it was funny and heartwarming like a good Disney movie.
As an adult, I still think this is a very good book but I can see that the author likely left out or glossed over some of the strains that came with this life, including lack of money. Once you understand economics you begin to realize that these people barely had enough money to support themselves and you wonder how they managed to keep everybody clothed and fed, despite them winning a major prize package from Life Magazine at one point. Also, as some reviewers have noted, mom Helen is constantly pushing to bring home "just one more" child over her husband's desire, very realistic in light of their meager income, to limit the size of their family. The fact that Helen always manages to bring home the new kid anyway and that Carl seems OK with that looks like a happy ending, but one has to wonder what dynamic was actually going on there, especially given that Carl sold a lucrative business to become a poor preacher when he and Helen were newlyweds. I later read online that the couple had gotten divorced in 1964 and while I didn't want to read too much into that, and it didn't seem acrimonious, it didn't surprise me that much either.
Finally, readers (or parents giving the book to their kids to read) should be aware that you'll need some knowledge of the historical and cultural backdrop to understand some parts of the book dealing with prejudice against the Japanese just after WWII and with prejudice against African-Americans at several points in the book, notably where the family tries to adopt a half-African-American girl and has to give up the attempt in the face of red tape and criticism even from their close friends and relatives. The book doesn't spend a lot of time explaining these situations since it was written in an era when many people still had the biased attitudes portrayed in the book. Someone who doesn't know that might be a little baffled or hurt though. The book also doesn't get into the social dynamics of adoption very deeply (i.e. none of the kids go looking for their birth moms or anything) so it's a little simplistic in that regard.
Summary of The Family Nobody Wanted
Doss's charming, touching, and at times hilarious chronicle tells how each of the children, representing white, Chinese, Japanese, Filipino, Korean, Mexican, and Native American backgrounds, came to her and husband Carl, a Methodist minister. She writes of the way the "unwanted" feeling was erased with devoted love and understanding and how the children united into one happy family. Her account reads like a novel, with scenes of hard times and triumphs described in vivid prose.The Family Nobody Wanted, which inspired two films, opened doors for other adoptive families and was a popular favorite among parents, young adults, and children for more than thirty years. Now this edition will introduce the classic to a new generation of readers. An epilogue by Helen Doss that updates the family's progress since 1954 will delight the book's loyal legion of fans around the world.
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