by Julie Mannix von Zerneck (Get the Book)In this touching memoir, Julie is 19 when she is sent to a psychiatric institute in 1963 because of an unplanned pregnancy. As a young debutante in Philadelphia, there are things expected of her, and pregnancy out of wedlock isn't one of them. She gives birth to her daughter-whom she names Aimee -but the girl is put up for adoption. After she leaves the institute, Julie marries Frank, the man who got her pregnant, and they both have successful careers in show business. Daughter Aimee is renamed Kathy by her adoptive family and is loved very much. But eventually, Kathy becomes curious about her birth parents and resolves to track them down. The book shifts between sections narrated by mother von Zerneck and daughter Hatfield, and both authors have gripping stories to tell. Readers will delight in their shared narrative, which is as heartwarming as it is engaging. Von Zerneck's life alone would be a fascinating read, but combined with Hatfield's search for her mother it becomes compulsive reading. --Publishers Weekly
