Somewhere Sisters: A Story of Adoption, Identity, and the Meaning of Family

In 1998, Liên struggled to care for her newborn twin girls, Hà and Loan. Hà was taken in by Liên's sister and grew up in a rural village, while Loan was adopted by a wealthy, white American family and renamed Isabella. When Isabella's adoptive mother learned of her biological twin, their lives changed forever. Award-winning journalist Erika Hayasaki spent years interviewing each of the birth and adoptive family members to bring the girls' experiences to life, challenging conceptions about adoption and what it means to give a child a good life.

Format: Paperback / softback
Length: 320 pages
Publication date: 12 October 2023
Publisher: Workman Publishing

Stirring and unforgettable, a breathtaking adoption saga like no other.
- Robert Kolker, New York Times bestselling author of Hidden Valley Road and Lost Girls

It was 1998 in Nha Trang, Vietnam, and Liên struggled to care for her newborn twin girls. Hà was taken in by Liên's sister, and she grew up in a rural village with her aunt, attending school and playing outside with the neighbors. They had sporadic electricity and frequent monsoons. Hà's twin sister, Loan, was adopted by a wealthy, white American family who renamed her Isabella. Isabella grew up in the suburbs of Chicago with a nonbiological sister, Olivia, also adopted from Vietnam. Isabella and Olivia attended a predominantly white Catholic school, played soccer, and prepared for college.

But when Isabella's adoptive mother learned of her biological twin back in Vietnam, all of their lives changed forever. Award-winning journalist Erika Hayasaki spent years and hundreds of hours interviewing each of the birth and adoptive family members. She brings the girls' experiences to life on the page, told from their own perspectives, challenging conceptions about adoption and what it means to give a child a good life.

Weight: 264g
Dimension: 140 x 209 x 19 (mm)
ISBN-13: 9781643755366