This memoir is about hanging on to that bit of love experienced. Through a description of his own childhood, most of it lived in the Foster Care system, he exposes how little love or consideration for love exists in the system. He was one of the very few lucky ones who had known his mother's love and then used his intelligence, school, and perseverance to survive his Foster care childhood. He presents a clear and brave picture of that process. Enjoyable in its honesty ( )

Hope's Boy is a biography of Andrew Bridge's life as he remembers growing up within the California Foster Care System. He survived a loveless foster home although they cared for him the entire eleven years he lived in foster care. It is a touching story about how he used his schooling and teachers to get through each day and never gave up on all the love he had for his mother who left in the foster system. What Andrew didn't know was that his mother was institutionalized during most of his foster care years. Read this book to understand how he grew into a professional lawyer as well as an advocate to helping children living in the foster care system. ( )

Andy 'Andrew' Bridges' job as a lawyer takes him to an instituion for children in state custody--an institution eeriely similar to the one he found himself in years ago as a yound boy. Bridges then flashes back to tell us the story of his childhood--a childhood where his mother, Hope, took him at age 7 from his grandmother. For a while things were fine with Hope and she tried to be a good, if somewhat eccentric, mother, but her mental conditon continued to deteriorate and eventually Andy was taken away from her. Then he found himself in the care of the state where he lived through several hellish years of institutional and foster care. He never forgot his mother though, the one person whose love he could count on, who he was sure he belonged too. It is a poignant story and very well told. Bridges does a good job of expressing just what his childhood feelings were in very vivid scenes and words. I was enthralled by the audio version and highly recommend reading or listening to this story. ( )

In America over half a million children live in foster care. Statistics show over half do not graduate high school, and as few as three percent ever graduate college. Within two years of aging out, thirty to fifty percent are homeless. How is this possible in one of the greatest and wealthiest of nations?

Hope's Boy rips the veil away to reveal the life of a child in the foster system. The only thing Andy has to cling to are the encouragement of a few teachers, his grandma's refusal to abandon him, and his mother's last words to him, "You are my boy! Remember, you are my boy!"

Read my full review here: http://thekoolaidmom.wordpress.com/20... ( )

What an amazing life story. I was totally enthralled with the way Andrew Bridge told his story, felt for him and his desperation to have a tie to his mother, and how he didn't live through his childhood, but survived it. Really great book, really worth reading. ( )