Richard Hill (19) (1946–)

How quickly we forget how time consuming family research was just two decades ago and in the case of DNA searches, how far we've come in the past five years! Finding Family is the story of Richard Hill's dogged search for the truth about his birth parents. The search took him more than twenty years and included the use of advanced technology as it was emerging. At the same time the author tells his story as if it were a novel with intriguing twists and turns. With a 2012 publication date I show more was a little concerned that it would feel dated. However, as genealogists, it is good for us to be reminded that not everything will be found on the Internet and that to do a complete and exhaustive search we must use a great variety of techniques and resources. show less

This book was a very interesting read of Richard Hill's search for his birth family. Hill was adopted and his search encompasses many decades and is helped by many people along the way. There are bureaucratic road blocks to navigate and many leads that fizzle out. As we follow the author through his quest the changing face of technology is also shown. Hill started out before the internet but adapted to new search tools as he went until he was able to prove that he had the right family show more connection through the use of DNA testing.

After I got home from work yesterday I found this book in my mailbox. I finished it last night because it was so captivating. show less

Loved this book, a true story about a man using every tool that he can think of to crack the mystery of the identity of his birth parents. I love reading about genealogy and family history but many of these kinds of books, although informative, are a little dry. I was surprised to find that this book was a real page turner and I couldn't stop until it was finished. In the retelling of the story of his search for his birth family, the author also demonstrated how family researchers use every show more clue from interviews, public documents, vital records, meticulous note-taking and analysis, and finally DNA confirmation to build evidence for their family trees. He also showed how family research is not usually a "fast food" kind of project. It takes real dedication, lots of time and money, and also the willingness to go further than family myths and face what the evidence proves. Many thanks to the author and his entire family for sharing their story. show less

Finding Family was an engaging read with the best possible outcome for the author. Mr Hill's decency and thoughtfulness rang through this book as he made the decision to search for his biological family. I appreciated how thoroughly he outlined the process and how he never whitewashed how complicated and fraught it can be. He took on many poignant issues as he searched for his birth mother and father, especially around the sexual lives of his birth parents and its implications for the next show more generations. One point that I disagree with Mr. Hill is about his belief in the importance of not hurting family members in the search process. While a laudable goal I think, at times a family member might feel hurt during a search and it may not be helped. For example, there are adoptive parents who do feel hurt that their child wants to look for a parent and while respecting their feelings and being as reassuring as possible, a person who is adopted might need to do it anyway and this is OK. Other than that, this was a heartwarming, well-written story and I am thrilled for the author that he found what he needed in his journey.

One other thought is that Mr Hill rated his own book on another site and I think it is best to trust the readers of your book to do that,

Thank you to NetGalley for allowing me the opportunity to review this book for an honest opinion. show less