This book was interesting but a little choppy. I would probably understand it more if there was a timeline included in the end as well as a family tree to keep everyone straight.

A nice enough story but there was a bit too much backstory rather than focus on the actual experience of adoption and being an adoptee for me.

My thanks to Netgalley and the publisher for an ARC of this book.

Round up to 3.5 stars

This was definitely an interesting story, however, the uniqueness of it got somewhat lost in all the familial details. Between her adopted family and her biological family, there were a LOT of stories and so the author's search for her true identity almost took a backseat. Additionally, there were so many different family members mentioned, that I think the book would have benefitted from a family tree at the front that the reader could refer to while reading the various anecdotes. Overall, I didn't dislike the book, but I would not necessarily recommend it either.

I loved this memoir! It was interesting on many levels: the adoption side of the story and also the time frame with Patti's parents being older adoptive parents - a very different generation! I laughed and felt sad for her throughout the story. 4 stars!

Thank you Netgalley for the advanced reader!

When I read the summary of this book, I was intrigued by the story of adoption and discovering her life before her adoption. Three birthdays for one girl also drew my attention.

I felt that the story ending up being interesting, but the authors story bounces around a lot and makes things confusing.

It was hard to keep my attention and I honestly would have stopped reading, if I didn’t want to know the whole story. It just didn’t seem like we were going to get to it, as the author bounces around to stories that don’t seem prevalent to what she was saying before she starts to telling a story about someone else.

I hope the publisher and editors work on the flow of the story, before the publishing date. This was written more in a conversational style, which doesn’t read well for a book.

#NetGalley #ARC I appreciate Net Galley’s opportunity to read an Advance Readers Copy of this book. I wish this author much success.

My best friend has an incredible adoption story and I find that my interest in this topic has grown through her. I was excited to read The Girl with Three Birthdays based on the description of a shocking adoption story. While the author's story was interesting, her writing was almost unreadable. The story was all over the place. The book editors should have done a better job of tightening up her writing so there was some sort of cohesiveness and logical order. Unfortunately, the author's story was lost behind some poor writing.

Adopted as a toddler in 1963, Patti Eddington grew up knowing that the parents who'd raised her were not her biological mother and father, but she never felt particularly curious about the woman who gave birth to her, and the tidbits she learned over the years about half-siblings and potential fathers were more irritating and confusing than tantalising. It is only decades later - as a middle aged woman with a daughter of her own - that Patti decides to find out what she can about her origins and how she came to be the daughter of Jim and Millie Eddington.

Eddington's story is undoubtedly a memoir, but it is also part local and social history; it is a fascinating snapshot of small town Michigan in the second half of the twentieth century, a detailed portrait of a couple whose approach to parenting was shaped by growing up during the Depression, and a thoughtful examination of how the practice of adoption has evolved, and the wide-reaching impact it can have on all families involved.

The title (The Girl With Three Birthdays: An Adopted Daughter's Memoir of Tiaras, Tough Truths and Tall Tales) is misleading in this sense, and readers who pick up this book hoping for lurid details, scandal and betrayal will be disappointed. This book, however, is far better: it is enlightening, moving and relatable. I would argue that The Girl With Three Birthdays is chiefly a love letter to Eddington's adored parents. Her feelings for them shine throughout the text - from funny anecdotes to touching stories about their loyalty to their family and the difference they made to their community. Eddington does a remarkable job of bringing her parents to life, and I felt her grief deeply at their passing. She has a real gift for capturing people she knows with humour and warmth; I found her depictions of her long-lost Aunt Eva and beloved godmother Aunt Dorothy truly beautiful, and her words genuinely moved me to tears several times.

Some aspects of Eddington's story are difficult to follow; the timeline jumps backwards and forwards a lot, making it challenging to understand the order in which events happen, e.g. when she was formally adopted, when she reconnected with various members of her biological family. Because of this non-linear timeline, I didn't initially realise that her parents had both passed away by the point at which Eddington begins to establish relationships with some of her biological parents' relatives. On the whole though, I enjoyed the way Eddington wove in stories from her own parents' childhoods as she told her story.

A memorable story, beautifully told. Thank you to NetGalley and She Writes Press for the opportunity to read and review an ARC of this book.

Leaning towards a 1.5 for this.

Yes, Patti's story is interesting, however her writing style wasn't for me.
The style felt really messy. There was no real flow to it, which made it so hard for me to get into it.

I do really love the cover for this book though.

I had trouble getting into this book and did not finish. The writing style wasn't really for me. Maybe I will give it a try sometime in the future.

Patti Eddington has always known that she was adopted but not the circumstances of her adoption. When she sends her DNA into a genealogy website and finds that members of her family live in her town, she is shocked. As she gets to know her biological family; she learns of a father who loved and missed her every day and a mother willing to give her up. Mostly, she learns just how much she is loved by all of her family - biological and adoptive.

This is not my normal read and I wasn't sure I would be interested in the story but was pleasantly surprised. Is this a life-changing book? No. Does it solve world hunger? No. What it will do is put a smile on your face as Patti remembers some of the most memorable times of her life - good and bad. The writing was simple and easy to understand which should make this a good quick read for everyone. This was just a pleasant book to relax with and enjoy.

As a former Social Worker and former Foster Parent, I found this memoir to be brave, honest and heartfelt. I believe it was extremely brave of Patti Eddington to explore her past and persevere in learning about her history. This was a story that was heartbreaking at times but heartwarming at other times. Thanks #NetGalley #SheWritesPress

It’s hard to review a memoir because how can you put a rating on someone’s life experience? In this case the low rating is for the poor writing and editing. What could have been a fantastic and gripping memoir was thoroughly let down. Such a shame.

Patti was adopted and she goes on a hunt to determine who she is and where she came from. As someone whose mother was adopted, I was interested in the process that Patti went through to uncover the system and steps that were taken that lead to her adoption. There are a lot of people mentioned and at times I struggled to keep track, but I thought this was a well written and heartfelt account of Patti’s experience. Ultimately, it’s a story of love and family. The one we’re given and the one we choose.

This was such a great read and is very well written. The author went into great detail and made it relatable to many. I really enjoyed this book!

A DNF for me I just couldn’t get into the style of writing on this one. I’ll try give it another go some other time

The premise of this book is so interesting (considering what it means to have a birthday and what the implications can be for not having that piece of information about yourself) and I really wanted to enjoy the experience of reading it, but I found the structure of the book quite confusing. It was hard to keep track of all the threads of storylines and the book, at times, felt structured more like the way you tell a story verbally to someone (with tangents and double backing). Perhaps I'm just not the right reader for this one.

Although I enjoyed this story, I found the narrative slightly confusing. It skipped between different timelines, a device I often enjoy in a book, but I found it tricky to keep the thread that ran through the timelines and characters.

⭐️⭐️/5. The Girl With Three Birthdays: An Adopted Daughter’s Memoir of Tiaras, Tough Truths and Tall Tales by Patti Eddington. Thank you to the publisher, the author and NetGalley for this advanced reader copy. I am an adopted daughter, and I was very excited to read this new book. Sadly, it was not a hit at all. Like my adoption, Ms. Eddington’s adoption was closed. She was not provided with much biological information, so eventually (also like me), she turned to Ancestry.com. Her story took a big turn from mine then though. It was filled with secrets and scandal. Her loving parents were not quite what they seemed to be. My issue with this memoir is that it was poorly written. It’s filled with rambling memories with no cohesiveness. It was a struggle to read. Thumbs down. #bookstagram #bookgram #reading #books #netgalley #adoption #bookworm #whatiread #goodreads #libbyapp

My main hold-up with this memoir was that it felt like it fell short based on the abstract. Based on the description, I went into it expecting mystery, conflict, and maybe even kidnapping or at least a little illegal activity. Instead, we get a non-linear montage of childhood memories and scattered thoughts. Eddington does have a beautiful writing style rich with imagery, but the story didn't start to really take on a plot until about 60% of the way through, which I found frustrating as a reader. Otherwise, it was a very unique life story, definitely worth telling.

Thank you NetGalley and She Writes Press for the opportunity to read an advanced reader's copy in exchange for my honest review.

I hate to mark down memoirs, because it is someone's real life story.. But this was drier than I anticipated. I did want a bit more drama (weird to say, since she was adopted with minimal information. Having a sister I found on Ancestry, I was hoping the story would be heartwarming. I feel bad for Patti, that it took this many years, and so many family members moving on. There are some answers she will never get, due to those family members that have already passed on.

3.5 stars, rounded up.