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Minneapolis author Shannon Gibney made waves in 2015 when she published her novel, “

” The experiences of main character Alex Kirtridge — a Black girl adopted by a white family — were partially informed by Gibney’s own life as a transracial adoptee.

Shannon Gibney on 'Dream Country'

Gibney returns to her own story with her new memoir, “

.” But this time, she mines different timelines — that of her own life, growing up as a mixed race adoptee in Ann Arbor, Mich. — and an alternate reality where her biological mom doesn’t give her up, and Shannon Gibney grows up as Erin Powers, the name she was given at birth.

Race, identity and adoption are powerful themes in what she calls a '“speculative memoir.”

This week on Big Books and Bold Ideas, Gibney joins host Kerri Miller to talk about why she chose this genre to tell the parallel stories of her life, and how she filled the holes in her history that adoption left behind.

To listen to the full conversation you can use the audio player above.

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Author

Host

How do you tell the story of your life when straightforward memoir isn’t enough? Shannon Gibney chose to get creative. The result is her new book, “The Girl I Am, Was and Never Will Be,” which uses both traditional memoir and speculative fiction to examine her life as a transracial adoptee.

Minnesota author Shannon Gibney on her new speculative fiction memoir

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