Three Little Words: A Memoir
Atheneum - Atheneum
Release date: 2008-01-08
Hardcover
Author: Ashley Rhodes-Courter
Social Problems (General) (Young Adult), Juvenile Nonfiction, Children's Books/Young Adult Biography, Children: Young Adult (Gr. 7-9), Biography & Autobiography - Social Activists, Family - Orphans & Foster Homes, Juvenile Nonfiction / Biography & Autobiography / Social Activists, Juvenile Nonfiction / Biography & Autobiography / Women, Juvenile Nonfiction / Social Issues / Homelessness & Poverty, Adopted children, Biography, Foster children, Foster home care, United States
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Three Little Words: A Memoir
Date undefinedI have purchased over a dozen copies of this book. I literally give them away to people. Ashley Rhodes-Courter is a success story. Unfortunately not all kids in foster care get to have a success story. Ashley aptly shows the reality of living in foster care in an engaging and spellbinding way. I have adopted 3 children out of foster care, 2 of them older child special needs adoptions with RAD. It is a tough life plan, but so necessary and more importantly, fulfilling. Many people will ask us about our adopted children's stories but we have to always answer, "that is confidential." Ashley provides us with a book that we can give people and say this is what it is like to be an older child waiting in the system for a forever family - and watching "forever" families disrupt. Older child adoptions are NOT easy, but they are worth it. Ashley travels and lectures so keep your eyes open (or check her web-site) and take the opportunity to meet her in person and get your book signed. Don't buy just one copy of this book, buy two and give one to a friend.
Three Little Words: A Memoir
Date undefinedWhen I read the last few chapters of this book I couldn't stop crying. What a wonderfully inspiring true story! Sometimes, dreams do end up coming true, even for foster children.
The first part of the book asks some important questions: what makes someone fit to be a mother - or a substitute mother? Ashley was nurtured and loved by a dysfunctional grandfather and his enabling girlfriend, and actually, that was where she should have stayed. These two people loved her dearly but weren't exactly model citizens; grandpa drank a little bit too much, and did engage in some questionable behavior when he drove drunk with his toddler grandson in the car.
It would have cost taxpayers and society far less if the family had been kept together. I am not an advocate of family reunification programs in general, but in this family's case, the outcome would have most likely been positive. Ashley's mother was incapable of raising her children, but her relatives were far more able, and completely willing to accept the responsibility. And a drunk grandpa would have been paradise compared to the hell that Ashley and her brother Luke endured over the next decade of their lives. They were taken away from their grandfather and placed with abusive foster parents, including one foster mother who punished her wards by making them drink hot sauce.
When Ashley dared to confide in someone about the abuse, she was tagged as a liar and a manipulator. She learned to keep quiet and to silently endure whatever was done to her by her foster parents. Her only savior was her court-appointed CASA advocate, also called a guardian-ad-litem, an unpaid volunteer who represents the best interests of children in foster care. However, there aren't enough advocates to meet the needs of every child, and it was several years before Ashley was assigned a CASA volunteer.
Some parts of Ashley's story may prove difficult to read if you've walked in her shoes and you have unresolved personal issues, abandonment, abuse, etc. Don't expect to get much sleep the night you finish reading this book.
A series of improbable coincidences would lead Ashley out of foster care and orphanages. What happened to her was nothing short of a miracle. She won the foster care child lottery, and was given a second chance at a new life. I highly recommend this book.
Three Little Words: A Memoir
Date undefinedI real a lot of fiction, and this book was a departure from my usual literary fare. I was not disappointed. I listened to the book on CD during a long drive and was hooked. As a CASA, I understand how the system works, and how often children are under-served. On the flip side, I have encountered wonderful foster/adoptive families who have worked tirelessly to improve the lives of children. This book is refreshingly honest. Ashley Rhodes-Courter is articulate, passionate, and courageous. I recommend this read to everyone.
