Prison Baby : A Memoir

A deeply personal and inspiring memoir recounting one woman’s struggles—beginning with her birth in prison—to find self-acceptance Prison Baby is a revised and substantially expanded version of Deborah Jiang Stein’s self-published memoir, Even Tough Girls Wear Tutus. Even at twelve years old, Deborah, the adopted daughter of a progressive Jewish couple in Seattle, felt like an outsider. Her mixed Asian features set her apart from her white, well-intentioned parents who evaded questions about her past. But when she discovered a letter revealing the truth of her prison birth to a heroin-addicted mother—and that she spent the first year of life in prison—Deborah spiraled into emotional lockdown. For years she turned to drugs, violence, and crime as a way to cope with her grief. Ultimately, Deborah overcame the stigma, shame, and secrecy of her birth, and found peace by helping others—proving that redemption and acceptance are possible even from the darkest corners. A deeply personal and inspiring memoir recounting one woman's struggles--beginning with her birth in prison--to find self-acceptance Prison Baby is a revised and substantially expanded version of Deborah Jiang Stein's self-published memoir, Even Tough Girls Wear Tutus. Even at twelve years old, Deborah, the adopted daughter of a progressive Jewish couple in Seattle, felt like an outsider. Her mixed Asian features set her apart from her white, well-intentioned parents who evaded questions about her past. But when she discovered a letter revealing the truth of her prison birth to a heroin-addicted mother--and that she spent the first year of life in prison--Deborah spiraled into emotional lockdown. For years she turned to drugs, violence, and crime as a way to cope with her grief. Ultimately, Deborah overcame the stigma, shame, and secrecy of her birth, and found peace by helping others--proving that redemption and acceptance is possible even from the darkest corners. From the Trade Paperback edition A deeply personal and inspiring memoir recounting one woman's struggles - beginning with her birth in prison - to find self-acceptance. Even at twelve years old, Deborah, the adopted daughter of a progressive Jewish couple in Seattle, felt like an outsider. Her mixed Asian features set her apart from her white, well-intentioned parents who evaded questions about her past. But when she discovered a letter revealing the truth of her prison birth to a heroin-addicted mother - and that she spent the first year of life in prison - Deborah spiraled into emotional lockdown. For years she turned to drugs, violence, and crime as a way to cope with her grief. Ultimately, Deborah overcame the stigma, shame, and secrecy of her birth, and found peace by helping others - proving that redemption and acceptance is possible even from the darkest corners "Even at twelve years old Deborah Jiang Stein, the adopted daughter of a progressive Jewish couple in Seattle, felt like an outsider. Her multiracial features set her apart from her well-intentioned white parents, who evaded questions about her past. But when Deborah discovered a letter revealing the truth--that she was born in prison to a heroin-addicted mother and spent the first year of her life there--she spiraled into emotional lockdown. For years she turned to drugs, violence, and crime as a way to cope with her grief. Ultimately, Deborah overcame the stigma, shame, and secrecy of her birth and found peace by helping others--proving that redemption and acceptance are possible, even from the darkest corners."--Publisher's description "Twelve-year-old Deborah Jiang Stein felt like an outsider. Her multiracial features set her apart from her well-intentioned adoptive Jewish parents, who evaded questions about her past. When Deborah discovered a letter revealing the truth--that she was born in prison to a heroin-addicted mother and spent the first year of her life there--she spiraled into emotional lockdown and deeper trauma. For years Deborah turned to drugs, violence, and crime to cope with her grief until she abandoned her reckless life and forged her way through healing and, eventually, found peace. Prison Baby proves that redemption and acceptance are possible, even from the darkest corners"--Back cover. After Discovering That She Was Born In A Prison To A Heroin-addicted Mother, The Author Recalls Her Subsequent Descent Into Drugs And Crime And Her Recovery As She Finds Forgiveness And Acceptance For Both Her Real And Adopted Mothers. Deborah Jiang Stein. Originally Published In 2012 By Cell 7 Media As: Even Tough Girls Wear Tutus.