A Guide to Russian Adoption: Professional Counseling and Personal Insights
by Alisa White Karwowski (9780313350528)

Alisa White Karwowski

Release Date: 01 December 2008
Format: Hardcover
Pages: 188
Category: Adoption
Publisher: Praeger Publishers
ISBN: 9780313350528
ISBN-10: 0313350523

This practical book explains the process of adopting a child from Russia, from first contact with a Russian agency through bonding with the adopted child back at home. Karwowski provides a resource that parents can carry along as they navigate the paperwork, the home assessment, court hearings, medical exams, and financial components of what can otherwise seem like an overwhelming process. Herself the adoptive parent of two sons from Russia, the author also details common issues families face as they acclimate their new child to their home, family, and American culture. Aiming to break the process into manageable steps, Karwowski incorporates her own experience as a backdrop. Degreed in both psychology and sociology, she discusses sensitive issues regarding the child, which can include issues of abandonment, trust, and attachment. For all of these, she presents methods adoptive parents can use to see the signs and cope. She also addresses misconceptions commonly held about adoptions from Russia, the country to which she traveled four times across two years, to adopt her sons.

USD $39.95