Not what I expected. Not true crime enough for me.

This book is about the child welfare system and is not a true crime book. That is what the author wanted to do with this story, and if that interests you read it, if not you might want to skip it.

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A devastating story of families torn apart

Deeply researched and sensitively told. This is investigative journalism at its finest. A must read.

Incredible investigative journalism

Author impeccably investigates and writes about corruption and systemic racism in child removal, CPS, the courts, and foster care system. A must read/listen.

Very interesting and depressing - feel the book could have been broader

This was very interesting and engaging. I do recommend the book. I wish the book had been more in depth about their life with the mothers and the murder itself - I understand it was supposed to be the childrens’ back story but I was left feeling like I needed more.

There are more than one side of a story

I found the book interesting and well written. I respect the author for paying attention to the birth families. There is no doubt that they suffered and continued to be mistreated. I would like to add, however, that the matter of a child removal often involves court. The description of how children were removed from their parents in the book comes from the parents, may or may not be how it actually happened. I also felt the author paying less attention to the impact of having parents with substance use and mental illness but blaming so much on poverty. Finally with so much emphasis on racism, which I agree, I wonder if this book could have been narrated by an African American mother. It is a little disappointing that this book could come across as the white people's story when African American person is not included in the book production.

Must read for all Americans

The author uses in depth reporting, empathy, and a riveting story to examine the complex cruelties of the systems of racism and control destroying lives through the CPS structure. She does so with grace and transparency, distilling a hard topic to an easy to understand narrative. For those white adults who grew up understanding a much different tale about CPS and the foster system, a much needed explanation that will hopefully spark change. Great reporting and a great work.

A Remarkable Achievement

Asgarian brilliantly defines the boundaries of this complex situation and delivers a compelling, multifaceted story. Readers (listeners) will both appreciate and be frustrated by the rough edges of reality that weren't replaced with narrative hooks and cliches. Asgarian has a point of view, but she is careful to provide the raw data that allows multiple perspectives to form. I sometimes disagreed but never felt as though that disagreement would be unwelcome. She has a talent for delivering detail amid warmly established depth. This book could have veered toward pedantry or toward poignancy in the hands of a less talented writer; Asgarian, however, was in full control of a complex narrative. This is an author with a distinctive voice, and the narrator did a good job of achieving fidelity with that voice (so good that I found myself losing track and thinking that the author had provided narration). I experienced the epilogue as awkwardly tacked on -- not bad but not in the same voice as the rest of the book and almost certain to be dated long before this excellent book is surpassed.

A must read

A must read if you want to understand the child welfare system and it’s consequences for birth families and children. Well written and performed. I was deeply moved by the back stories of everyone involved, the births families, the children, and the adoptive mothers.

A damning indictment of America’s child welfare system

This expose of the child welfare system shows its mealy underbelly, and the corruption, racism, and classism that permeate it. It’s a terrible story of what happened to 7 innocent kids caught up in the system. I could not stop listening - the way the child welfare system is examined through the story of these 7 kids makes it very compelling. It’s a wake up call.

We once were a family

What a tragic tale. The writer has laid open one of the worst child neglect stories of our Government.