NO NAMES TO BE GIVEN
by Julia Brewer Daily
Daily’s novel explores the complexities of adoption through the lives of three women forced by the mores of 1960s society to give up babies conceived outside of marriage.
On Aug. 22, 1966, three young women each give birth in a New Orleans home for unwed mothers. Growing up in rural Illinois, Sandy’s childhood was shattered by her father’s death and her mother’s marriage to an abusive man. She ran away at 17 to a nearby city, where she pursued a successful career as an exotic dancer. She had romantic dreams of sharing a home with suave businessman Carlos, but he ended up in prison, leaving her pregnant and alone. Becca comes from an aristocratic, White Southern family. She went to college to study law, determined to make a mark beyond the expectations of Southern womanhood, and met Zeke, a Black student, also studying law, who shares her ideals regarding equality and social change. They conceived a child, but Becca’s racist parents forced her to give up the baby for adoption. Faith, from Tennessee, loved to sing in front of the crowds who came to hear her minister father preach. Her singing career expanded as his ministry did, and she was filled with hope for her future; then one of her dad’s major fundraisers raped her when she was 16, resulting in a pregnancy. The main theme of Daily’s subtly profound narrative is summed up by a line written by Faith in her journal toward the end of the work: “Adoption is a two-sided coin—heartbreak and loss for the birth mother, joy and elation for the adoptive mother.” The story effectively explores the web of social issues that underlies the institution of adoption, including racism, poverty, sexual violence, and hypocrisy. These themes are intertwined in a captivating and highly readable tale with elements of romance, mystery, and deep sorrow. It’s a portrait of women trapped by circumstance and society, drawn with sympathy and respect, and their stories also serve as cautionary tales about the corrosive effects of secrets.
A riveting and deeply felt fictional examination of adoption’s causes and costs.