The Price of Children
Stolen Lives in a Land Without Choice
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The Price of Children
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Narrated by:
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Kirsten Potter
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By:
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Maria Laurino
About this listen
“I was spellbound . . . one of the best books I’ve recently read” —Elizabeth Strout, Pulitzer Prize–winning author of Olive Kittredge.
A powerful church. An acquiescent government. In The Price of Children, investigative journalist Maria Laurino details the shocking story of mothers and children deceived and exploited as directed by the highest levels of the Vatican.
Between 1950 and 1970, the Vatican and the American Catholic Church sent nearly four thousand Italian children to the United States for adoption into “good” Catholic homes. With the religious stigma of unwed motherhood turning families against daughters and a Church and State wanting “illegitimate” children sent abroad, mothers were lied to, given forms to sign that they didn’t understand, or even told their baby had died, all to further supply this international adoption pipeline.
Maria Laurino uncovers archival correspondence among priests who ran this program; provides testimonies from birth mothers and their adopted children; and with passion and insight, considers how the intersection of Catholicism, women, sex, and sin shaped private lives. The Price of Children is a moving and brilliant account about the tenacity of people searching for their origins and trying to answer long-buried questions. It is a chilling lesson for post-Dobbs America as the author describes the danger of a powerful church and acquiescent government dictating the shape of a woman’s life.
“I could not put this book down. An amazing read. Laurino eloquently unfolds the nefarious history of the Italian ‘war adoptions’ in a manner that is entirely readable and clear as a bell, her research precise and well rendered.” —Elizabeth Strout, Pulitzer Prize–winning author
“An extraordinary work of investigative journalism.” —Corriere della Sera
“By shedding light on the mistreatment suffered by single mothers of that time, [The Price of Children] invites all women to defend those civil rights which, today, are questioned in many parts of the world.” —Vanity Fair Italia
“[An] astonishing investigative work. . . . Maria Laurino’s painful, very rich and very human book. . . . Helps us ask fundamental questions about the present and the future.” —Doppiozero
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What listeners say about The Price of Children
Average customer ratingsReviews - Please select the tabs below to change the source of reviews.
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Overall4 out of 5 stars
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Performance5 out of 5 stars
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Story4 out of 5 stars
- Kathleen Culver
- 01-01-25
Valuable insight, misguided connections.
For starters, I deeply appreciate the story being told in this book. I had my brother taken from me as a child because a wealthy older couple wanted to adopt him like a puppy while he and I were temporarily being fostered during a time when our mother was in legal trouble.
Despite doing everything she could to keep both of us, the courts told her that one of us had to be adopted or else they would take both of us.
This happened in the 00s in the United States. Struggling, at risk parents are still being taken advantage of and having their babies taken from them, right now.
However, the author takes particular issue with Safe Haven Baby Boxes, which is entirely misguided and a little counter productive.
I implore anyone who takes issue with the idea of a Safe Haven Baby Box to look up how many infants were found deceased or near death, abandoned after birth, often with umbilical cord attached, and placenta still nearby. This is the reality people with uteruses are facing in a anti-abortion world,
If people do not have safe access to abortion, which is a human right, they will be forced to all manner of extreme measures. Safe Haven Baby Boxes are literally the only alternative to some people, who face unknowable repercussions if forced into parenthood against their consent.
The parent did not choose to be pregnant, the child did not choose to be born, the least we may do is offer a safe place for them to be transferred into state custody.
The issue, is commercialized adoption. The simple idea that you can pick and choose and purchase an infant like adopting a new pet is absolutely sickening. It needs to stop.
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Overall4 out of 5 stars
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Performance4 out of 5 stars
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Story4 out of 5 stars
- Debra
- 10-31-24
A little known story of the Italian baby adoption subject
Why did it have to get political. Would have been a 5 star read if not for the infiltration of the abortion opinion on the part of the author toward the end of a very informative and interesting subject.
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2 people found this helpful
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Overall5 out of 5 stars
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Performance5 out of 5 stars
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Story5 out of 5 stars
- Amazon Customer
- 10-16-24
Incredible research and shocking discoveries!
Laurino spent years of time researching the topic and her use of every single word was breathtaking. She uncovered the truth about what the Catholic Church did between the 50s and 70s.
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Overall1 out of 5 stars
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Performance1 out of 5 stars
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Story1 out of 5 stars
- Amazon Customer
- 04-03-25
Disgusting
What a disgusting and warped way to try to convince people that killing their unborn baby is the best option for unwanted pregnancies. It attempts to parallel the tragedy of Italian babies being deceitfully taken from their mothers and shipped America to the current unplanned pregnancy issues in America. It tells of the turmoil the Catholic church and Italian government caused for the mothers and later in life for the children. I'm sure that is so true and it's heartwrenching. Then the writer takes a turn and tries to use that to say abortion is the best option and most compassionate way to avoid emotional turmoil in adopted children later in life. Completely not applicable to the pro-choice issues in America in 2025. Sickening. Not once does it acknowledge the long term emotional and physical effects abortion leaves with a mother, much less the fact that a child lost its life. This book is definitely a push for a liberal agenda. Nauseating!
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