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The Home for Unwanted Girls by Joanna Goodman
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4.22  ·  Rating details ·  26,364 ratings  ·  2,783 reviews
Philomena meets Orphan Train in this suspenseful, provocative novel filled with love, secrets, and deceit—the story of a young unwed mother who is forcibly separated from her daughter at birth and the lengths to which they go to find each other.
In 1950s Quebec, French and English tolerate each other with precarious civility—much like Maggie Hughes’ parents. Maggie’s English- Philomena meets Orphan Train in this suspenseful, provocative novel filled with love, secrets, and deceit—the story of a young unwed mother who is forcibly separated from her daughter at birth and the lengths to which they go to find each other.
In 1950s Quebec, French and English tolerate each other with precarious civility—much like Maggie Hughes’ parents. Maggie’s English-speaking father has ambitions for his daughter that don’t include marriage to the poor French boy on the next farm over. But Maggie’s heart is captured by Gabriel Phénix. When she becomes pregnant at fifteen, her parents force her to give baby Elodie up for adoption and get her life ‘back on track’.
Elodie is raised in Quebec’s impoverished orphanage system. It’s a precarious enough existence that takes a tragic turn when Elodie, along with thousands of other orphans in Quebec, is declared mentally ill as the result of a new law that provides more funding to psychiatric hospitals than to orphanages. Bright and determined, Elodie withstands abysmal treatment at the nuns’ hands, finally earning her freedom at seventeen, when she is thrust into an alien, often unnerving world.
Maggie, married to a businessman eager to start a family, cannot forget the daughter she was forced to abandon, and a chance reconnection with Gabriel spurs a wrenching choice. As time passes, the stories of Maggie and Elodie intertwine but never touch, until Maggie realizes she must take what she wants from life and go in search of her long-lost daughter, finally reclaiming the truth that has been denied them both. ...more
Published April 17th 2018 by Harper Paperbacks
The Home for Unwanted Girls
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Did anyone else think the book was very good but a bit too long? I think it needed about 75 pages edited out to make the story tighter and have it move along faster. Thanks for the link below to the Washington Post article about those terrible orphanages.
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Wendy Hill No. I didn't want it to end
I would love to read more about this home- Pauline Gill wrote about it but unfortunately it is in french- if anyone knows of anything written in english i would love to know?
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Joanna Goodman Believe me I tried to find the English version... no luck! It sure would have made my life easier.
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Average rating 4.22  ·
·  26,364 ratings  ·  2,783 reviews
All LanguagesAfrikaans ‎(1) Bahasa Indonesia ‎(1) English ‎(2680) Español ‎(6) Français ‎(5) Italiano ‎(1) Latviešu valoda ‎(1) Nederlands ‎(14) Português ‎(19) Eλλnvιkά ‎(1) فارسی ‎(1)
Dec 26, 2018 Marietjie Steyn rated it really liked it
Hierdie ene het my diep geraak. Ek was onbewus van hierdie deel van die geskiedenis, waar weeshuise in psigiatriese hospitale verander is en alle weeskinders as geestelik versteurd verklaar is en dan ook so behandel is...
In die 1950's verdra Quebec se Franse en Engelse mekaar net-net. Maggie se Engelse vader het ambisies vir sy dogter wat nie die huwelik met die arm Franse seun op die volgende plaas insluit nie. Maar Maggie se hart word gesteel deur Gabriel Phenix. Wanneer sy op vyft Hierdie ene het my diep geraak. Ek was onbewus van hierdie deel van die geskiedenis, waar weeshuise in psigiatriese hospitale verander is en alle weeskinders as geestelik versteurd verklaar is en dan ook so behandel is...
In die 1950's verdra Quebec se Franse en Engelse mekaar net-net. Maggie se Engelse vader het ambisies vir sy dogter wat nie die huwelik met die arm Franse seun op die volgende plaas insluit nie. Maar Maggie se hart word gesteel deur Gabriel Phenix. Wanneer sy op vyftien swanger word, dwing haar ouers haar om Elodie vir aanneming te gee en haar lewe weer op die regte spoor te kry.
Elodie word grootgemaak in Quebec se verarmde weeshuis. Die boek neem 'n tragiese draai wanneer Elodie, saam met duisende ander weeskinders in Quebec, geestelik siek verklaar word as gevolg van 'n nuwe wet wat meer befondsing aan psigiatriese hospitale bied as weeshuise.
Maggie, getroud met 'n sakeman wat gretig is om 'n gesin te begin, kan nie die dogter wat sy gedwing is om te laat aanneem nie, vergeet nie...
Die wrede behandeling in die psigiatriese hospitale was vir my geweldig skokkend, die wreedheid van die nonne nog erger, maar die uitkoms van hierdie twee vroue se lewens was baie bevredigend. ...more
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Historical > Historical Fiction
Joanna Goodman’s #1 Bestselling Historical Fiction novel, The Home for Unwanted Girls was released April 17, 2018 to wide critical acclaim.
Joanna is the author of four previous novels, including The Finishing School, You Made Me Love You and Harmony. Her stories have appeared in The Fiddlehead, The Ottawa Citizen, B & A Fiction, Event, The New Quarterly, and White Wall Review.
Originally from Mo Joanna Goodman’s #1 Bestselling Historical Fiction novel, The Home for Unwanted Girls was released April 17, 2018 to wide critical acclaim.
Joanna is the author of four previous novels, including The Finishing School, You Made Me Love You and Harmony. Her stories have appeared in The Fiddlehead, The Ottawa Citizen, B & A Fiction, Event, The New Quarterly, and White Wall Review.
Originally from Montreal, Joanna now lives in Toronto with her husband and two children, and is at work on her sixth novel. She is also the owner of a well-known Toronto linen store, Au Lit Fine Linens. ...more
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