The Greatest Books of All Time on Adoption

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This list represents a comprehensive and trusted collection of the greatest books. Developed through a specialized algorithm, it brings together 759 'best of' book lists to form a definitive guide to the world's most acclaimed books. For those interested in how these books are chosen, additional details can be found on the rankings page.

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Rank Book Authors Year Country Language Actions
250 Anne of Green Gables L. M. Montgomery 1908 Canadian English
520 Mansfield Park Jane Austen 1814 British English
1461 Oranges are not the only Fruit Jeanette Winterson 1985 British English
1536 Rubyfruit Jungle Rita Mae Brown 1973 American English
2029 Nobody's Boy Hector Malot 1878 French French
2097 The Bean Trees Barbara Kingsolver 1988 American English
2158 The Clan of the Cave Bear Jean M. Auel 1980 American English
2221 Simon and the Oaks Marianne Fredriksson 1985 Swedish Swedish
2482 The Cider House Rules John Irving 1985 American English
2595 Why Be Happy When You Could Be Normal? Jeanette Winterson 2011 British English
2695 Dalva Jim Harrison 1988 American English
3568 Little Fires Everywhere Celeste Ng 2017 American English
4309 The Reluctant Orphan Sara Seale 1947 British English
4446 Ellen Foster Kaye Gibbons 1987 American English
4785 Sarah, Plain and Tall Patricia MacLachlan 1985 American English
5081 Ernest And Celestine Gabrielle Vincent 1981 French French
6000 Kate Vaiden Reynolds Price 1986 American English
6080 The Lamplighter Maria Susanna Cummins 1854 American English
6096 The Heart's Invisible Furies John Boyne 2017 Irish English
6458 A Gate at the Stairs Lorrie Moore 2009 American English
6839 The Awakening Of Helena Ritchie Margaret Deland 1906 American English
8715 Innocent Blood P. D. James 1980 British English
9027 Citizen Of The Galaxy Robert A. Heinlein 1957 American English
9936 One Child Mei Fong 2016 Unknown English
10448 Ten Thousand Saints Eleanor Henderson 2011 American English
10674 A Living Remedy Nicole Chung 2023 American English
10686 Daughters Of The Bamboo Grove Barbara Demick 2025 American English
10935 The Leavers Lisa Ko 2017 American English
11285 The Girls Who Went Away Ann Fessler 2006 American English
11439 Fiela's Child Dalene Matthee 1985 South African Afrikaans
11516 The Dare Game Jacqueline Wilson 2000 British English
12187 Allegedly Tiffany D. Jackson 2017 American English
12513 The Other Mother Carol Schaefer 1991 American English
12767 Mon Vrai Nom Est Elisabeth Adèle Yon French French
13511 Jesus Land Julia Scheeres 2005 American English
14051 Pigs in Heaven Barbara Kingsolver 1993 American English
14646 Pollyanna Eleanor H. Porter 1913 American English
14763 Adelphoe Terence -160 Roman Latin
14983 A Yellow Raft In Blue Water Michael Dorris 1987 American English
14983 We Were Once A Family Roxanna Asgarian 2023 Unknown English
15897 Summer Edith Wharton 1917 American English
17114 The Broken Cord Michael Dorris 1989 American English
17114 So Many Ways To Begin Jon McGregor 2006 British English
17114 Let The Northern Lights Erase Your Name Vendela Vida 2007 American English
17114 A Girl Returned Donatella Di Pietrantonio 2017 Italian Italian
17114 Accabadora Michela Murgia 2009 Italian Italian
17114 Before We Were Yours Lisa Wingate 2017 American English
17114 Look For Me Lisa Gardner 2018 American English
17114 Secret Daughter Shilpi Somaya Gowda 2010 Unknown English
17114 Run Ann Patchett 2007 American English
17114 Bitterroot Susan Devan Harness 2018 Unknown English
17114 And Tango Makes Three Justin Richardson, Peter Parnell 2005 American English
17114 Breathing Into Marble Laura Sintija 2009 Unknown Lithuanian
17114 Locomotion Jacqueline Woodson 2003 American English
17114 Biting The Hand Julia Lee 2023 Unknown English
17114 We Were Once A Family Roxanna Asgarian 2023 Unknown English
17114 My Notorious Life Kate Manning 2013 American English
17114 Far From The Tree Robin Benway 2017 American English
17114 Oh, Boy! Babies Alison Cragin Herzig, Jane Lawrence Mali 1980 Unknown English
17114 The Lost Children Of Wilder Nina Bernstein 2001 American English