Before we were yours is a well written fiction book about a disturbing event in US history. The characters were real and the book left me wanting to know more. I found myself researching the actual events in history. Few books pull me in and leave me wanting to know more.

This was such a great book...very well written...had a hard time putting the book down.

So I will be honest that the cover of this book did not appeal to me at all (I think it is the font that title is in) and for this reason I nearly didn't bother with it but a colleague had recommended it so I decided to give it a go. And, boy I am so glad I did. This book is amazing! Wingate has a delightful way with words and the story, whilst fiction is based on her research regarding the topic. If you are in for a tearjerker this is the book for you!

This was a very moving book. Although fiction, it's based on actual events. From the beginning you think you know what's going on, but as the book proceeds you realize that there is much more going on than you realize. This is a chapter in our history that doesn't make it into the textbooks, but I was fascinated. I had no idea that all these things had happened. The book is well written and the story is engrossing.

Years ago, our book club read a book about children that were taken from women and families who were arrested as dissidents in Argentina during the 1970s and 1980s and given to childless military or wealthy pro-government couples. We were all horrified. Now, we know that even without a “militant” or fascist government, this was going on in the U.S. which makes it more shocking because it happened right under our noses and, with the approval of so many active community elders. Lisa Wingate writes a heartbreaking but valuable story about an ugly part of our culture and community. Excellent book discussion book.

Great story. Four children living on a shanty boat are taken from their parents and put into an orphanage to be sold to rich clients. Abuse and tearing family apart. Current times cross paths with the past.

This book reminded me of The House Girl. So much so that I had to go and look it up to check if they were written by the same author. They're not.

Both books alternate chapters between a really compelling story from the past and a modern day character who is somehow tied to the historical story. In both cases, the modern day character adds very little to the overall story apart from making you wish you could get to the next chapter already to get back to the good parts.

I liked this book, but I'd have liked it more without so much intrusion from the present.

A simply fantastic novel. The writer (Lisa Wingate) moves the story between past and present, creating great story tension so you can hardly wait to get from one to the other and to try and figure out the connections between the two time periods. It's a story, both sad and uplifting at the same time with so many nooks and crannies of left out story, that it feels all the more real. Nothing in real life ever works out completely. There are always so many unresolved issues -as is true with this novel. I read tons of mysteries and thrillers - this story will hold your attention with the best of them.

The story looked good but wasn't; too much back and forth between past and present.

This novel is a gem. Based on the true story of the Tennessee Children’s Home Society and it’s wicked director Georgia Tann, the fictitious characters created by the author come to life in a story of love, challenge and family secrets. Alternating between present day and 1939, you gradually discover how Avery Stafford, born and raised in a family of wealth and politics, discovers who her great-grandparents were. You also learn about the life on Shantyboats on the Mississippi and one of the families living aboard the Arcadia. The author also makes the reader aware that in some prominent families, the truth is not always sought out. The main protagonist, Rill Foss, is an endearing character. Excellent book.