...make[s] clear how both systems have largely disregarded the problem that most families within them face: not necessarily the death of parents, but poverty ... help[s] illuminate the repercussions of America’s broken child-welfare system and the ways it has failed to best serve kids and families—showing how urgently the country needs to reimagine it ... Though the experiences of St. Joseph’s survivors form the book’s backbone, Kenneally zooms out to develop a broader condemnation of Catholic orphanages across the U.S., and even worldwide. The result is a damning reckoning with a tragedy she calls a 'mass catastrophe.'
Kenneally is a diligent, patient reporter ... The reportage in this book is impeccable. She never says more than she can prove, but she also never says less. The stories were true ... A damning book, from start to finish.
Kenneally makes a strong case for prosecuting still-living monsters and providing reparations for their still-living victims. A powerful work of sociological investigation and literary journalism.
