Listen free for 30 days

  • The Girl I Am, Was, and Never Will Be

  • A Speculative Memoir of Transracial Adoption
  • Written by: Shannon Gibney
  • Narrated by: Shannon Gibney
  • Length: 5 hrs and 10 mins

Pick 1 audiobook a month from our unmatched collection.
Listen all you want to thousands of included audiobooks, Originals, and podcasts.
Access exclusive sales and deals.
Premium Plus auto-renews for $14.95/mo + applicable taxes after 30 days. Cancel anytime.
The Girl I Am, Was, and Never Will Be cover art

The Girl I Am, Was, and Never Will Be

Written by: Shannon Gibney
Narrated by: Shannon Gibney
Try for $0.00

$14.95 a month after 30 days. Cancel anytime.

Buy Now for $26.81

Buy Now for $26.81

Pay using card ending in
By confirming your purchase, you agree to Audible's Conditions of Use and Amazon's Privacy Notice. Tax where applicable.

Publisher's Summary

Part memoir, part speculative fiction, The Girl I Am, Was, and Never Will Be explores the often surreal experience of growing up as a mixed-Black transracial adoptee.

Dream Country author Shannon Gibney returns with The Girl I Am, Was, and Never Will Be, a book woven from her true story of growing up as a mixed-Black transracial adoptee and fictional story of Erin Powers, the name Shannon was given at birth, a child raised by a white, closeted lesbian.

At its core, the novel is a tale of two girls on two different timelines occasionally bridged by a mysterious portal and their shared search for a complete picture of their origins. Gibney surrounds that story with reproductions of her own adoption documents, letters, family photographs, interviews, medical records, and brief essays on the surreal absurdities of the adoptee experience.

The end result is a remarkable portrait of an American experience rarely depicted in any form.

* This audiobook includes a downloadable PDF of images, documents and resources from the book.

PLEASE NOTE: When you purchase this title, the accompanying PDF will be available in your Audible Library along with the audio.

©2023 Shannon Gibney (P)2023 Listening Library

What the critics say

★ "An ambitiously authentic adoption story where fiction does the work of truth, and archives, correspondence, and health records provide the roots of fantasy."—Kirkus Reviews, starred review

★ "A fantastical, transcendent memory collage that shirks convention in search of what is real and true about familial bonds."—PW, starred review

★ "Readers will praise the raw honesty and insight in this lovingly crafted memoir."—Booklist, starred review

More from the same

What listeners say about The Girl I Am, Was, and Never Will Be

Average Customer Ratings

Reviews - Please select the tabs below to change the source of reviews.