In this part memoir and part work of speculative fiction, author Shannon Gibney relates her experiences growing up as a mixed-Black transracial child adopted by White parents. To relate the scope of her feelings and her life story, she writes parallel stories of a fictional Erin Powers, the name her birth mother gave her when she was born, and Shannon Gibney a young biracial girl searching for information about her birth parents, interspersed with documents, letters, interviews, and photographs. In one timeline, Erin Powers grows up as the daughter of Shannon's alcoholic birth mother, who had a brief, complicated relationship with her father. In the other, Shannon reads books, listens to podcasts, and contacts organizations, diligently searching for her origins and trying to make sense of who she is. Along the way, she meets up with Erin through a portal that puts her in contact with her Black father for the first time.

Michael L. Printz Honor Book