Resources for Adoptive Families Going on Homeland Tours of China

Thinking about a homeland tour of China?

Here is a handpicked collection of resources from people who have taken the trip, as well as background material on the history and culture, and stories for kids and adults.

Most of the resources here focus on adults and families. If you want books specifically addressed to children, click the link listed below. I recommend Dumpling Days by Grace Lin and Chu Ju's House by Gloria Whelan.

Here you'll find a film documentary of a group of adoptive families who took the trip back to China along with two book memoirs written by women who took their daughters back to visit China.

Video. Ages teen-adult.

In this film, “somewhere between” is a phrase meant to describe how girls who were adopted from China and brought to America feel somewhere between being American and Chinese.

I was a little hesitant about this film, wondering if it would be overly focused on the perceived outsider status of children from China, but I found it to be a poignant and surprisingly honest film about several teenage girls who were making their way through life. That said, I would still urge parents to preview this film to see if they are ready to broach the topics which come up.

Four girls from age 13-15 are the focus of this film. They come from diverse American families.

Some had parents who studied Mandarin; some had siblings; somewhere only children. One was adopted by a lesbian couple in the northeast; one was part of a deeply Christian family in the south. One was an athlete who participated in crew; one was in color guard, and one wanted to be the first Asian musician to play at the Grand Ole Opry.

Sometimes people want to categorize all adoptees as having the same hopes and fears, but this film wisely shows that they all have different ideas about what adoption means for them. One girl tells us she doesn’t have any real interest in finding her birthmother. Another has traveled back to China 12 times in her young life to help children in Chinese orphanages. And one decides to try finding her birthparents when she takes a trip back to China.

Astoundingly, the villagers take a look at her face and tell her she looks remarkably like a man in the village. They run to get him, and he says he is her father.

I won’t tell any more here (though you can find out what happens next by reading the Amazon review), but all the stories of these young women left me thinking about what our children can expect as they travel through this life.

Ages 10-up

Apart from the beautiful photography, what I like most about this video travelogue is that it gives the viewer some cultural, historical and geographical context for the scenes it is showing. So when we see the Forbidden City, we learn not only how big it is, but why and how it was built.

The video segments are fast-moving, but managed to show a variety of poignant and interesting tidbits: in Shanghai, which is compared to "China's Manhattan," we see the standard shots of people doing tai chi in the park, but we also see children learning techniques of Chinese opera. In another scene, the kids are in a dance studio learning the samba. (In one shot, some elderly folk are practicing their disco moves.)

The narrator has a pleasant voice, though sometimes his breathless enthusiasm is a little over the top. However, I would say it's much preferable to a monotone drone. The soundtrack complements the information with simple tunes on native instruments, rather than the "educational Muzak" that you find on some informational videos.

The video covers Beijing, Suzhou, Hongzou, the Great Wall, X'ian, Guilin, Guangzhou, Shanghai, and Hong Kong. Extras include well-done video shorts about Chinese Opera (we see a few shots of the man putting on makeup to get ready to become the Monkey King), the last Emperor, Shanghai, the Li River (focusing on a painter who lives and travels the area), acupuncture, and Beijing sights.

This video was put together in 2003, but it didn't seem terribly out of date. For the money, I think it is well worth getting for the family--an interesting and respectful introduction to the country.

Ages 12-up

This 100-minute video from the Discovery Channel focuses on vignettes of several individual Chinese people who are working to improve their lot in life. Among them we see a rice farmer, a migrant window washer, a kung fu prodigy, and aspiring Olympic gymnast, an Imperial bow-maker (archery), a young urban professional, and a policewoman.

Each section is relatively brief, but their stories are told with respect and poignancy. The window washer's daughter doesn't recognize him because he's been away working in the city. The gymnast takes a tumble on the balance beam and is not sure she can go on to the next round of competition. The policewoman fights for recognition and respect for her work. The bow-maker is the last of 17 generations of craftsmen.

If you plan to watch this with the family, be aware that the film talks briefly about heroin smuggling and heroin addicts and that the young urban professional woman decides to have plastic surgery, including having an eye fold added, in order to advance in her career.

The photography is top-notch (the show ends with a huge fireworks display in Hong Kong) and James Spader does a nice job of narrating the piece.

The show is a little tricky to find in DVD, but you can also choose the streaming video, which costs less than two dollars.

Ages 8 and up

This 8-part BBC series features stunning photography of the scenery and wildlife in China. Bernard Hill (who played King Theodon in the Lord of the Rings movie) provides the narration, which is interesting and informative without being overly long or political.

The episodes cover such common travel spots as the Li River in Guilin, the Great Wall, and the bamboo forests where the Giant Pandas live. Viewers will learn quite a bit about the social life and history of China (including efforts to preserve the environment) as well as its natural resources. It's a great introduction to the sights you will be seeing in person.

These books include accounts from birthmothers in China, the most definitive research on adoption in China, an account of an audlt adoptee (she was adopted from Taiwan) and a memoir by the NPR radio host Scott Simon.