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Expecting Adam: A True Story of Birth, Rebirth, and Everyday Magic Audiobook
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(3.01) - 5,458 listener ratings
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"He says you'll never be hurt as much by being open as you have been by remaining closed."
The messenger is a school janitor with a master's in art history who claims to be channeling "from both sides of the veil." "He" is Adam, a three-year-old who has never spoken an intelligible word. And the message is intended for Martha Beck, Adam's mother, who doesn't know whether to make a mad dash for the door to escape a raving lunatic (after all, how many conversations like this one can you have before you stop getting dinner party invitations and start pushing a mop yourself?) or accept another in a series of life lessons from an impeccable but mysterious source.
From the moment Martha and her husband, John, accidentally conceived their second child, all hell broke loose. They were a couple obsessed with success. After years of matching IQs and test scores with less driven peers, they had two Harvard degrees apiece and were gunning for more. They'd plotted out a future in the most vaunted ivory tower of academe. But the dream had begun to disintegrate. Then, when their unborn son, Adam, was diagnosed with Down syndrome, doctors, advisers, and friends in the Harvard community warned them that if they decided to keep the baby, they would lose all hope of achieving their carefully crafted goals. Fortunately, that's exactly what happened.
Expecting Adam is a poignant, challenging, and achingly funny chronicle of the extraordinary nine months of Martha's pregnancy. By the time Adam was born, Martha and John were propelled into a world in which they were forced to redefine everything of value to them, put all their faith in miracles, and trust that they could fly without a net. And it worked.
Martha's riveting, beautifully written memoir captures the abject terror and exhilarating freedom of facing impending parentdom, being forced to question one's deepest beliefs, and rewriting life's rules. It is an unforgettable celebration of the everyday magic that connects human souls to each other.Download and start listening now!
"Expecting Adam is a very interesting book. As I was reading this book, I felt very insecure and that anything could happen. The book starts off with Martha speaking to a woman that has magical powers. Most people probably thinks that's not real, but so did Martha, but she changed her mind when she saw her powers worked. Martha continues her story by giving us background information about her past times in Harvard. Although Martha and her husband were schooling in Harvard, their fetus has a very high chance of having down syndrome. Deciding whether to keep the baby and how to organize their life once they have the baby is harder than being in Harvard. Martha decides to have the baby even though many people have said many bad things about it. This book is a very touching and heart-felt book. I would specifically recommend this book to Mabel and readers who like reading books that liked the book, My Sister's Keeper."
— Michelle (4 out of 5 stars)
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Wickedly funny and wrenchingly sad memoirs of a young mother awaiting the birth of a Down syndrome baby while simultaneously pursuing a doctorate at Harvard. . . . Even skeptics will find magic in this story, and parents of a Down syndrome child will cherish it.
— Kirkus
Expecting Adam Listener Reviews
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Kia Turner, 2/23/2022
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" Loved this book! Heart wrenching and thought provoking.....a Harvard intellectual must decide to have a downs syndrome baby and find out how her life takes a new path. "
— Michele, 2/8/2014 -
" I really enjoyed this book. I'm still not sure if I believe everything she writes... but it was a great read. Very insightful. "
— Mdoty6, 1/27/2014 -
" This is a fabulous book of hope spirituallity and love. I'm not a nonfiction reader, but this made me a convert. "
— Celeste, 1/27/2014 -
" do not read if you are pregnant. "
— Susan, 1/24/2014 -
" This is one of my very favourite books...very inspiring! "
— Natalie, 1/22/2014 -
" This was such an amazing story of faith and angels. What a wonderful experience for this family - and what a blessing this sweet, sweet boy was to them. "
— Sheri, 1/20/2014 -
" This was a truly beautiful and inspiring book. The author is clearly very intelligent, articulate, and self aware not to mention insightful. She and I do not see eye to eye on everything, but I enjoyed reading her very much. "
— Catherine, 1/10/2014 -
" I loved this book. It's difficult for some to separate themselves from Beck's background and abandoned theology, but I love her writing style. I FELT and related to this one in a magical way...even if I could see exactly what her mysterious experiences meant. Hopefully she'll get it too someday. "
— Carin, 1/7/2014 -
" What a truly delightful book.....great read. "
— Pamela, 1/6/2014 -
" In reading this book, I really, really, really thought I would give this 4 stars, but after completing it I realized I wanted to give it 6 stars. I think you just need to realize that some of the language used is historic (yes, tyvm, the 80's are history!!). Wonderful memoir, this is a must read. "
— Heidi, 12/27/2013 -
" Having a special needs child myself, I thought the author was extremely self-involved as she described her journey. It struck me as odd that she was so selfish and self-centered in her approach to motherhood. I kept reading this book hoping it would get better, and it never did for me. "
— Mary, 12/25/2013 -
" A surprisingly good read. This is one of those books that continues to stay with you and pop into your head unexpectedly. "
— Jessica, 11/30/2013 -
" I read this book while I was pregnant with my first child, and it really made me think since it is about a woman who is pregnant. The author had some different ideas than I do about life and death and life after death, but it was still very interesting. "
— Trenda, 11/24/2013 -
" This book is magical, another memoir that reads like fiction. Really puts things in perspective that there is always a blessing in disguise when you least expect it. "
— Amy, 11/11/2013 -
" Absolutely loved it. I will never forget some of the passages. The author turned a potentially dire situation into a touching and humorous one. Great read. "
— Saundra, 3/31/2013 -
" Funny, raw, vulnerable and wonderful. Martha is human and real, and writes about her life's magic with sit down and have a cup of coffee wonder. Might be a little challenging for pregnant moms, but the story is so rich and positive, it's probably ok. "
— Shannon722, 3/14/2013 -
" An amazing insight into the lives of a mother and her family struggling through an incredibly tough pregnancy which pushes alot of boundaries, yet opens their minds & enriches their spirits. It is sad yet at the same time it is uplifting and magical. "
— Erica, 2/2/2013 -
" I loved this book. Martha Beck tells the story of her pregnancy and adjustment to having a child with a disability. She recognizes the value of life in however it manifests itself. "
— Jody, 1/30/2013 -
" enjoyed reading about Harvard Square and her "intuitive" moments "
— Lisa, 1/2/2013 -
" enjoyed this book a lot when i read it. "
— James, 10/15/2012 -
" An unoriginal and trite treatment of a sad situation. Not worth the time unless you are specifically interested in birth defects. "
— Lynn, 8/25/2012 -
" Phenomenal account of a spiritual awakening.Have read at least five times. "
— Valerie, 6/8/2012 -
" I enjoyed reading this. Martha definitely had to struggle to make peace with her decision to carry Adam full term. For someone who may not believe that Angels are among us this story would be very hard to accept. "
— Donna, 5/22/2012 -
" I wish I could vote for 3.5 stars. I loved the message: how the author found the magic in everyday life through the birth of her Down Syndrome son. Her writing style is funny and witty and easy to read. "
— Adri, 4/20/2012 -
" I must confess that my perception of this book was probably ruined by the bio I read about the author. I liked it until I looked her up. Oh well. Also, I'm not a mystical person so I didn't identify with the more mystical aspects of the book. "
— Heather, 4/17/2012 -
" It is about a woman who finds out that the son she's expecting has Down's Syndrome. Some pretty amazing and magical things happen to her when she's pregnant to help her to know that things are going to be okay despite her fears. This was a wonderful book and it was very uplifting. "
— Tracey, 4/15/2012
About Martha Beck
Martha Beck is a writer and life coach who specializes in helping people design satisfying and meaningful life experiences. She holds a bachelor’s degree in East Asian Studies and a master’s degree and doctorate in sociology, all from Harvard. She is currently a monthly columnist for O, The Oprah Magazine and the author of the bestsellers Finding Your Own North Star: Claiming the Life You Were Meant to Live and the memoir Expecting Adam. She lives in Phoenix, Arizona.
About Joyce Bean
Joyce Bean is an accomplished audiobook narrator and director. In addition to having won several AudioFile Earphones Awards, she has been nominated multiple times for the prestigious Audie Award. Equally adept at narrating fiction and nonfiction, and she also narrates audiobooks under the name Jane Brown.