Ally Eisnberg is 39 years old and newly divorced when she decides to adopt. She has a cultural relationship with Russia since her great grandmother was born there yet she speaks no Russian and has little idea of the cultural divide between the two countries. Once the tedium of paperwork has been completed, Ally and her new daughter begin their journey to the United States. Problems begin immediately and any illusion of “happily ever after” dissipates while they are still in Russia.
THE TRUTH ABOUT HANNAH ROSE is an important book for anyone considering adoption because it outlines the difficulties as well as the hope of bringing a new life into one’s family. This also offers an objective look at a topic that, at first mention, connotes happiness and acceptance; the reality is the daily clutch of obstacles faced by adoptive parents over issues as mundane as a name to the specter of abuse that may have been part of life in the orphanage. The adopted child, a young girl named Katya, exhibits problematic behavior from the very moment she leaves the orphanage. She screams when she does not get her way, like most 4 year olds, but it is ear piercing, as if to get attention among a crowd of children, each vying for attention. Ally valiantly struggles with the language barrier while at the same time dealing with her daughter’s penchant for stealing other’s food while at day care. Ally is a single mother whose lifeline of relatives are over an hour away; this raises the degree of difficulty significantly for her. It is her love for this new child, problems and all, that eventually allows the two of them to live a more stable life. Although Ally seems a bit too self-centered and overwrought, she perseveres in her struggle to integrate Hannah Rose into her new life.
THE TRUTH ABOUT HANNAH ROSE is a realistic account of international adoption based on the author’s knowledge of those who have made the commitment to adopt an orphan from overseas.
Reviewed by Ed Bennett for IndieReader.