Martha Shirk

A great book about "aging out" of foster care (reaching the age of majority and leaving the program by default). A new favorite!

Each chapter goes into a lot of detail about one former foster child - what landed them in care, what their home or institutional placements were like, the financial situation they were in when they turned 18, what kinds of transition programs were available, etc. A variety of unique challenges were covered in the eight profiles, and common threads in their stories were uncovered, as well.

This was published in 2004, and I'd be curious to see what, if any, changes have been made since to the foster care systems of the states covered here. I'd especially love to see updated numbers on the cost of care (for a family foster home versus a group home versus an institution, etc.). Not to mention the cost of care in contrast to the cost of prevention strategies (supporting families in various ways so things don't go so far as the removal of a child from a home). But that's a different book, I realize!

There is a great balance between narrative and statistics here that makes this an excellent introduction to the subject for the uninformed. This was a thorough book, and very thought-provoking - even for someone like myself, who has read and thought about the subject before.

I really appreciated that there were some practical ideas in the conclusion for getting involved, and a huge list of the organizations (with contact information) mentioned throughout the book.

I highly recommend it!… (mehr)

An interesting look at a little-known issue: the plight of young people who age out of foster care and are essentially dumped into the streets on their own. I have been concerned about this from a public policy point of view for a few years now, so I was eager to finally get my hands on this book. If you come in looking for qualitative case studies that put a very human face on this problem, you will not be disappointed. However, I had hoped to learn more about the extent of the problem. It is clear to me from the people who were included that this was a non-random sample of young people featured, so to complement that, I would have enjoyed a set of representative statistics (assuming such statistics exist) to tell me about the breadth and depth of the problem, and the frequency of various post-foster care outcomes.

This book is written for general audiences and does not have a heavy sociological bent or lots of jargon, so it is very accessible and easy to read. That said, it is also tragic and emotionally trying in parts. The struggles these young men and women have gone through are heartbreaking, and it's about time their stories were told.… (mehr)