Adoption In Christina Baker Kline's Orphan Train

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While reading the book Orphan Train written by Christina Baker Kline, I came across a peculiar topic that I’ve been interested in all my life, adoption. Adoption is when a child is unable to remain with it’s birthparents and must be given to an adoption agency to await and see if another couple is capable of adopting a child.There were several characters in the book who had to deal with being adopted such as: Molly, Vivian, Maisie, Carmine, Dutchy, Sarah, and many more. Adoption was a big topic in the book the Orphan Train. “Some were loving adoptions, but some were horrendous. The children were seen as cheap labor. Some children were never picked at all and had to be taken back to the city.” (VOIGHT) Although I’ve heard from that adoption…show more content…
Her story began as her Irish family came to the U.S. by entering New York. Vivian’s family was struggling to make ends meet, even here in the U.S. “It had been two years since we left our home on the west coast of Ireland. Life was hard there, too; our da held and lost a string of jobs, none of which were enough to support us.” (Kline, 2013, p. 20). Her adoption started right after her family suffered the fire. She was put on the orphan train only to meet a baby who she cared for named Carmine, and a boy named Dutchy. Soon after they were all adopted and Vivian was adopted by a lady named Mrs. Byrne. Mrs. Byrne owned a clothing shop where Vivian learned to sew clothes. This came to an end when in 1929 the stock market crashed causing Mrs. Byrne and her husband to lose their wealth. Vivian was then placed with another poor, dirty, and family full of hatred, the Grote Family. Then, Vivian’s time with the Grote family ended when Mr. Grote tried to rape her, and Mrs. Grote was infuriated blaming Vivian for the situation and kicking her out into the cold. In the cold Vivian ran to her teacher’s house, where Miss Larsen, where she was placed in a new home with Mrs. Murphy. Vivian’s final destination was to live with Mr. and Mrs. Nielsen, who owned their own store, and Vivian was allowed to make her own renovations to it. That we the conclusion of Vivian’s adoption

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