Susan Van Sleet-artist, reunited birthmother, and writer-shares a gripping and sometimes raw account of being sent away as a pregnant teen in an era when the shame of giving up a child was punished by the deafening silence that followed. Her inspirational memoir sheds new light on the shadowy era of closed adoption and validates how her vow of secrecy manifested itself through emotionally saturated canvases and poignant poetry. Mary & Me, Beyond the Canvas was written following the author's reunion with her twenty-seven-year-old daughter. As an artist, Susan transferred feelings of guilt to...