The Home for Unwanted Girls: The heart-wrenching, gripping story of a mother-daughter bond that could not be broken - inspired by true events

Written by:
Joanna Goodman
Narrated by:
Saskia Maarleveld

Unabridged Audiobook

Ratings
Book
45
Narrator
13
Release Date
April 2018
Duration
9 hours 59 minutes
Summary
Philomena meets The 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.
Reviews
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Kendra W.

This is a great book.

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Kimberly P.

I loved this book. Lots of emotions. Great character development! The ending was realistic and quite powerful.

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Anonymous

This was a heart-wrenching story but it was told so beautifully I loved the book.I cried,I laughed I was totally taken in to this story. Well I hope many others read it The characters were good and well developed.

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Jennifer S.

Hit home for me being an adoptee . Extremely touching story brought tears to my eyes several times . Well done .. couldn’t stop listening!!

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Anonymous

Great narration! Sad story!

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