Synopses & Reviews
Can White parents teach their Black children African American culture and history? Can they impart to them the survival skills necessary to survive in the racially stratified United States? Concerns over racial identity have been at the center of controversies over transracial adoption since the 1970s, as questions continually arise about whether White parents are capable of instilling a positive sense of African American identity in their Black children.
"[An] empathetic study of meanings of cross-racial adoption to adoptees"
Law and Politics Book Review, Vol. 11, No. 11, Nov. 2001
Through in-depth interviews with adult transracial adoptees, as well as with social workers in adoption agencies, Sandra Patton, herself an adoptee, explores the social construction of race, identity, gender, and family and the ways in which these interact with public policy about adoption. Patton offers a compelling overview of the issues at stake in transracial adoption. She discusses recent changes in adoption and social welfare policy which prohibit consideration of race in the placement of children, as well as public policy definitions of "bad mothers" which can foster coerced aspects of adoption, to show how the lives of transracial adoptees have been shaped by the policies of the U.S. child welfare system.
Neither an argument for nor against the practice of transracial adoption, BirthMarks seeks to counter the dominant public view of this practice as a panacea to the so-called "epidemic" of illegitimacy and the misfortune of infertility among the middle class with a more nuanced view that gives voice to those directly involved, shedding light on the ways in which Black and multiracial adoptees articulate their own identity experiences.
Review
"[An] empathetic study of meanings of cross-racial adoption to adoptees." - Law and Politics Book Review, Vol. 11, No. 11, Nov. 2001
"This superb study of transracial adoption in the United States addresses profoundly vexing and divisive questions about the social, biological, cultural, and political meanings of identity. Displaying a rare blend of sociological wisdom, empathy, and eloquence, BirthMarks demonstrates how and why there can be no such thing as color-blind families or adoption policies so long as the color line remains an intractable American dilemma. Anyone who cares about the changing contours of families and race today should eagerly adopt this marvelous book." - Judith Stacey, author of In the Name of the Family
"A compelling mixture of voices and social analysis . . . required reading for anyone seriously interested in adoption and families in a multiracial world." - Maxine Baca Zinn, Michigan State University
"BirthMarks clarifies the complexities of transracial adoption, but it does much more than this. Sandra Patton's detailed and sensitive research helps us understand the depths of racial identity itself. The lesson here is that racial identity is not something given, but something achieved. This resonates not just for the adoptees Patton studies, but for us all. It suggests immense possibilities for resisting racism. Transcending the simplistic 'pro vs. con' debate about transracial adoption, Patton strives to present racial formation as a highly nuanced process of becoming oneself." - Howard Winant, Temple University
Review
"A wide-ranging, comparative study which draws on archaeological, literary, and ethnographic sources from the first millennium BCE to the present to discern common features in the ancient customs and native religions of Inner Eurasia."-Ken Teague in Asian Affairs,
Synopsis
Animal and Shaman presents a comparative survey of the ancient customs and religions of Central Asia. The Pre-Christian and Pre-Muslim peoples of the region, such as the Huns, Scythians, Turks, Mongols, Manchus, Finns and Hungarians, shared a number of traditions and rituals. Characteristics observed by anthropologists today may be traced directly back to an ancient past.
In ancient times there were remarkable commonalities in the forms of worship and spiritual expression among the different peoples of Inner Eurasia, all largely based on the role of animals in their lives. The harsh physical climate of the region led to an emphasis on hunting and animals, in contrast to the fertility rites common in more agriculturally hospitable areas. These characteristics have survived not only in the legends of the region, but have also found their way into the mythologies of the West. Baldick proposes that the myths, rituals, and epics of Central Asia served as possible foundations for such great works at the Odyssey, the Gospels, and Beowulf, which seem to have precursors in Iranian and Inner Eurasian tales.
Synopsis
"A rich and readable source of information and interpretation."
New York History
"Cohen presents a detailed description of the everyday life of early Dutch settlers in New York and New Jersey. He gives special attention to the rise of the Dutch Reformed Church in these areas, and particularly the denomination's transformation into a subculture that could truly be considered American."
Bookman's Weekly
"An impressive study of material culture"
Choice
About the Author
Julian Baldick was, until his retirement, Reader in the Study of Religions
at Kings College London.
He is the author of
Mystical Islam: An Introduction to Sufism (also available from NYU Press), among other titles.