To the End of June

This was an extremely nuanced take of the current foster care system and its highs and lows. From the perspective of a woman who had been a homeless teen after a mentally ill mother kicked her out of the house as well as an (unofficial) foster mother herself, Beam comes largely as an outsider to the system, curious about why it is the way it is. I thought that perspective was very helpful, because the writing was very accessible and unbiased. Beam explores the dynamic laws influencing the foster care system and the political winds that have driven it both towards and away from removal of children from the biological home. Throughout the book she largely sticks with one foster family, Bruce and Alyson Green and their foster kids and explores the issues raised in their family, although she also touches on other families and a therapeutic/group home.

I thought the biggest strength of the book was that Beam is unbiased, and even though she's often writing about her friends, she pulls no punches. She explores the best and the worst about each situation/agency/philosophy/housing situation. By the end of the book it's clear that there are no easy answers, that even the most well-meaning of adults have caused secondary casualties and that even the most protected children don't come out psychically unharmed. I spent a lot of the book alternating between feeling like everyone should sign up to foster and that there was no solution for foster families. That dilemma was not resolved, but I learned a lot in the process.