Christina Rickardsson

Non-fiction memoir, translated from Swedish, about the author’s journey to discover her past. Christina Rickardsson was born Christiana Coelho in Brazil. She lived in caves with her mother, and barely survived on the streets of São Paulo, before being admitted to an orphanage, where she was adopted at age eight by a Swedish couple. This is a dual story of the author’s tragic childhood experiences in Brazil, and her journey from Sweden to Brazil as an adult to connect with her cultural heritage and biological family.

I think the book is worth reading for a first-hand account of a life most of us cannot imagine, along with insight into the resulting psychological damage. She comes across as candid and still suffering. It’s amazing to me how she recalls so much of her life before age eight. While I applaud the author for calling attention to the traumatic plight of children in poverty, she is not a particularly accomplished writer. The writing is passable, though a bit choppy and very simplistic in style. The memoir was most effective for me when focused on healing and understanding, and what it means to have dual cultural identities.
… (mere)

Christina Rickardsson's story of life as a street kid in São Paulo with her sometimes absent mother, her eventual adoption to Sweden, and her trip back to Brazil to find her mother and family. Rickardsson isn't the greatest of writers, her language is very repetitive and especially her internal reflection sound more like journal entries than anything really contemplative or insightful. Also, some of her recollections from when she was three and four years old are suspiciously detailed and I can only assume that these are memories that her mind has created out of remembered fragments rather than actual events. Her story is interesting, however, and probably only meant to awaken readers to the plights of poor children (since Rickardsson runs a charity foundation for vulnerable children). Not a great read, but worth reading.… (mere)

A sad memoir, filled with love.
Christiana spent her early years with her mother living in the wilderness and the slums of Brazil with her very loving and extremely impoverished mother. She is taken away from her mother and put in an orphanage where she is adopted by a couple from Sweden. Thus Christina is born. Never knowing why she was taken from her mother, she set out to find her.
I struggled with some of the writing as it just went on and on, almost like a stream of consciousness; which is great during self-discovery but, not so good with a book.
My rating is based on the writing/editing and is no indication of the immense respect that I have for the writer and her accomplishments in life.… (mere)

I obtained this book through Amazon First Reads.

As a person adopted at birth who later in life found my birth parents, I was intrigued to find a memoir of a child who was adopted in late childhood and in adulthood went back to find her mother.

This is an amazing story, and the writing is compelling. Christina was born as Christiana in the poorest section of Sao Palo, Brazil. She had a brutal upbringing and was tough enough (and lucky at times) to survive. When she was seven, she was placed in an orphanage with her brother and both were adopted by a Swedish couple. A night and day different world, in many respects.

The main portions of the story interlace her trip back to Brazil when she was in her 30s with the harsh reality she faced growing up. It is a gripping tale that is impossible to put down for the evening. To warn - some of the details of her growing up are very, very dark.

I have an incredible respect for the author. She not only survived a brutal childhood but has thrived, as has her brother. The reunion with her mother added beautiful notes to the story.

I'd say this is a five-star must read, but (warning) it may not be suitable for some readers who have suffered childhood trauma. For those who can, it is a compelling read.… (mere)