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A review by lilybear3
Monstrous: A Transracial Adoption Story by Sarah Myer
challenging
emotional
hopeful
informative
inspiring
reflective
sad
tense
fast-paced
5.0
To preface this review, I myself am a transracial adoptee. I was adopted by white parents from China as a baby. I'm immediately adding this to my "Essential Reading List If You Want to Get to Know Me" (title in progress). This might be less of a review and more of I related to this so hard and I'm glad it exists and everyone should read it so they can have an idea of what it's like to be a transracial adoptee.
It's important to note that every adoptee experience is unique and each person has a different perspective. Some are good, some are bad, some are neutral. All adoptees' stories are valid and hold significance. At the root of it, adoption is trauma. Period. This is something that was hard for me to learn and that my experience doesn't invalidate others' and vice versa.
Sarah's story is impactful and does not shy away from documenting the racism they experienced in their childhood nor the ableism of the 2000s (both of these are still prevalent, may look different today). I related a lot; growing up in a small white town, not being exposed to other cultures, not knowing when I was micro-aggressed or what those were (lack of exposure to stereotypes), etc. When I didn't see myself in Sarah, I saw myself in Liz, Sarah's sister. Growing up, I was a lot like Liz in that adoption was a part of my identity, but I didn't think about it as much. I'm fortunate to have no major racist incidents and I got along with many of my peers. It wasn't until my early-ish mid-twenties I started coming out of the adoptee fog. I'm also grateful to relate to having extremely supportive and loving parents.
I mean this is in the best way possible; I can't wait to talk about it in therapy. I learned some stuff about myself with the help of Sarah's story. This book was healing for me and I hope it is for others.
The art is incredible. Simply amazing at illustrating these emotions they just hit the reader hard. Sarah is truly talented.
Backmatter included a note from the author, a list of adoptee and mental health resources, and family photos.
It's important to note that every adoptee experience is unique and each person has a different perspective. Some are good, some are bad, some are neutral. All adoptees' stories are valid and hold significance. At the root of it, adoption is trauma. Period. This is something that was hard for me to learn and that my experience doesn't invalidate others' and vice versa.
Sarah's story is impactful and does not shy away from documenting the racism they experienced in their childhood nor the ableism of the 2000s (both of these are still prevalent, may look different today). I related a lot; growing up in a small white town, not being exposed to other cultures, not knowing when I was micro-aggressed or what those were (lack of exposure to stereotypes), etc. When I didn't see myself in Sarah, I saw myself in Liz, Sarah's sister. Growing up, I was a lot like Liz in that adoption was a part of my identity, but I didn't think about it as much. I'm fortunate to have no major racist incidents and I got along with many of my peers. It wasn't until my early-ish mid-twenties I started coming out of the adoptee fog. I'm also grateful to relate to having extremely supportive and loving parents.
I mean this is in the best way possible; I can't wait to talk about it in therapy. I learned some stuff about myself with the help of Sarah's story. This book was healing for me and I hope it is for others.
The art is incredible. Simply amazing at illustrating these emotions they just hit the reader hard. Sarah is truly talented.
Backmatter included a note from the author, a list of adoptee and mental health resources, and family photos.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Ableism, Body shaming, Bullying, Cursing, Homophobia, Panic attacks/disorders, Racial slurs, Racism, Xenophobia, Lesbophobia, and Toxic friendship
Moderate: Mental illness, Transphobia, and Abandonment
Minor: Cancer, Grief, Cultural appropriation, and Dysphoria