Product Description

Although single women have long been permitted to adopt children, adoption by unmarried men remains an uncommon experience in Western culture. However, Robert Klose, who is single, wanted a son so badly that he faced down the opposition and overcame seemingly insurmountable barriers to realize his goal. The story of his quest for a son is detailed in this intimate personal account.

The frustrating truth he reports is that most adoption agencies seem unsure of how to respond to a single man's application. During the three years that it took for him to proceed through the adoption maze, Klose met resistance and dead ends at every attempt. Happenstance finally led him to Russia, where he found the child of his dreams in a Moscow orphanage, a Russian boy named Alyosha.

This is the first book to be written by a single man adopting from abroad. The narrative of his quest serves as an instructional firsthand manual for single men wishing to adopt. It details the prospective father's heightening sense of anticipation as he untangles bureaucratic snarls and addresses cultural differences involved in adopting a foreign child.

When he arrives in Russia, he supposes the adoption will be a matter of following cut-and-dried procedures. Instead, his difficulties are only beginning. Although he meets kind and generous Russians, his encounter with the child welfare system in Moscow turns out to be both chaotic and bizarre. However, his dogged ordeal pays off more bountifully than he ever could have hoped. In the end he comes face to face with a little boy who changes his life forever.

Robert Klose is an associate professor of biological science at University College of Bangor, Maine, and is a regular contributor to The Christian Science Monitor.

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #986228 in Books
• Published on: 1999-03-01
• Original language: English
• Number of items: 1
• Binding: Hardcover
• 165 pages

From Publishers Weekly
Given the number of children languishing in orphanages overseas and the number of Americans clamoring to adopt, one would think that it would be a relatively quick and straightforward process to bring them together. Not so, particularly if the prospective parent is an unmarried man. The title gives away the happy ending, which somewhat deflates the suspense that builds as Klose, a columnist for the Christian Science Monitor and a biology professor in Orono, Maine, runs into one blind alley after another in his search for "Pablo," the Latin-American boy he believes is waiting for him. With wry humor, Klose chronicles the adoption process, step by agonizing step, from his first meeting with an agency through parenting classes, obsessive cleaning for his "homestudy" inspection and dealing with adoption facilitators of varying levels of honesty and efficiency (one bilks him out of $4000). After more than two years, much paperwork and many fees, Klose forgoes his Latin dream and, after spotting a boy in an adoption agency video, travels to Russia to pick up seven-year-old Alyosha. A combination journal, travelogue and, above all, love story, this is a wonderful read, even for those uninvolved in adoption.
Copyright 1999 Reed Business Information, Inc.

From Library Journal
Those who have met Alyosha Klose in the columns written by his father (biology, Univ. of Maine, Orono) for the Christian Science Monitor will be especially interested in this expressively written saga of a journey toward adoption. Klose narrates his two-and-a-half-year navigation of the painful, frustrating, up-and-down steps to single male parenthood with elegance and insight, culminating in his adoption of a little boy from a Moscow orphanage. This is an enlightening read about the world of agencies and individuals in the international adoption "business" that manages to convey a certain amount of suspense, even though we know the goal was attained. Highly recommended for general readers.ASuzanne W. Wood, SUNY Coll. of Technology, Alfred
Copyright 1999 Reed Business Information, Inc.

Review
"...[M]ight be considered requisite reading for anyone planning to do what Klose did...instructive..." -- Dave Eggers, The New York Times Book Review

"A combination journal, travelogue and, above all, love story, this is a wonderful read, even for those uninvolved in adoption." -- Publisher's Weekly

"The climax of the story ...reads like a cold-war thriller." -- David Conrads, The Christian Science Monitor

Customer Reviews

Adopting Aloysha
Robert Klose has done an outstanding job informing his readers of the sometimes nightmarish process of adopting a child. Klose captures his readers attention immediately by indicating that the difficulties are underscored by his being a single male. Add to this the unscrupulous practices of some adoption agencies and you have a book that reads more like a favorite novel than a chronological explanation of his difficulties. Mr. Klose clearly details the roller coaster-like experience he had in trying to adopt a young boy from a variety of countries. He uses humor to tell this very serious tale to keep his readers interested in what is often a very frustrating process. Klose's book is a must for parents (single and married) who intend to adopt. The happy ending that follows his day by day experiences in Russia until Aloysha is finally his to take to America make the book an excellent read.

Suspense until the very last pages.
I read with fascination this detailed account of Robert Klose's efforts to adopt a son. So great was his desire to be a parent, that he was able to undergo the long, arduous and expensive emotional roller coaster of foreign adoption virtually by himself. Being a single man greatly decreased his chances of adoption in most countries and proved impossible in others. But he refused to give up. We know at the outset that his perseverance eventually pays off, but this fact in no way diminishes our need to keep reading in order to discover what will happen next. We are taken along for a ride on the author's roller coaster. I found the book difficult to put down. Through it all we get the feeling that Klose's survival tool is his sense of humor. The qualities he displays in the telling of this story - humor, perseverance, and the desire to share the beauty he is able to find in his life in Maine - are the ingredients of good parent, and we the readers, celebrate with him when he finally leaves Russia with his son.

Klose has the gift for writing and living
I received this book with low expectations considering previous tactical books I had read on the subject. It stopped me in my tracks.
I was so impressed by Robert's literary style and story-telling ability. He allows us to go through the entire process and share very personal emotions --discovering with him important lessons for anyone involved in international adoption. The frustrations and bureaucracy encountered are almost overwhelming, but well worth it. I loved this book. I would highly recommend it to anyone considering international adoption--single or married. However, I would also recommend it to anyone who would enjoy an inspirational true story about a man and a boy half-way accross the world who seemed destined to be family. I promise it will change your perspective on adoption and what it means to love. All we need now is the sequel. Thanks Robert for living and telling your story.
(One more thought, if I were a TV producer, it would make a great Sunday Night Movie)