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www.oakvillebeaver.com The Oakville Beaver, Wednesday November 19, 2008 - 29 Artscene · WEDNESDAY, NOVEMBER 19, 2008 By Tina Depko OAKVILLE BEAVER STAFF Sign up now for guitar, bass, drums, and piano OAKVILLE'S MUSIC STORE Adoption book a labour of love for local author Deborah Brennan was inspired to write a book about adoption in Canada after finding there was nothing on that subject in the bookstore to help her when she went through the process. The obstacles of adopting daughter Diana, now aged nine, were overwhelming, so Brennan decided to embark on an extensive writing project to shed light on the adoption process. The result is Labours of Love, which was released this fall. "Adoption is surrounded by such huge misconceptions," said the Oakville author. "We're in 2008 and a lot of thinking around adoption in Canada is back in the 1970s somewhere. It is very misunderstood, it is not talked about enough and people not involved in adoption are afraid to talk about it." The bulk of the book features adoption stories of 20 families across the country. Brennan connected with the families through adoption agencies. "I worked hard to find stories and it was difficult," she said. "I had talked to 40 or 50 families." She said that nearly everyone she met along the journey, from people sitting beside her on the plane to staff at bed and breakfasts, said that they had been affected by adoption. "I wrote this book to tell people's stories and bring dialogue into the open because one in five Canadians have been touched by adoption, by either being a birth parent, an adopted parent or an adoptee," she said. "That's a pretty big number." Brennan recorded each story during inperson interviews. She also hired photographers to take pictures of the families. She travelled across Canada from September to November 2007 to meet families interested in telling their stories. It was an emotional journey, she said. "I wanted to give a sense of where these tell the story because of his disease, retinoblastoma, which he ultimately died of." Brennan finally got the green light for the project by Dundurn Press, which means the book is available for sale in major bookstores. She said she is happy with the final project and hopes it makes a difference. "I want this to be a book that celebrates, educates and inspires," she said. "The people in the book are the people who are the experts. I'm the messenger. I'm the person bringing their stories to Canadians and to get dialogue going. "We all hear about these Madonna and Angelina Jolie celebrity adoptions and they get crazy, sensationalized coverage in the media. I think it degrades the process and gives people an inaccurate view of what the reality is. It is another thing to hear from people about the lifelong experience of it." Brennan said the current system of adoption in Canada is not functional. She said that there are far too many children in need of a good home that are being held back by a system littered with red tape. "There are roughly 22,000 children across Canada who are Crown wards who are available for adoption," she said. "The adoption process isn't easy. It takes too long and is too cumbersome in many ways. The whole system is better than it was, but it needs a lot of change. "The bottom line is that we need to get beyond all the red tape and focus on how we can place children in permanent families more expediently." Brennan, who is already a busy mom with both Diana and biological son, Daniel, 15, said she has ideas for future books on the issue of adoption. She said she is also looking to get involved in adoption initiatives. A book signing for Labours of Love will be held Saturday, Nov. 22 from 1 to 3 p.m. at Bookers Bookstore, 172 Lakeshore Rd. E. The book is available at Chapters and Indigo, as well as at local bookstores. For information, visit www.laboursoflove.ca. NIKKI WESLEY / OAKVILLE BEAVER ADOPTING CHANGE: Author Deborah Brennan has written a book about adoption in Canada, including the story about adopting her daughter, Diana (inset right). people live in our country and give the read- and adoption advocates. er a sense of who they were really reading The publishing process was difficult for about, so I interviewed them right in their Brennan. Without an agent, she personally own home," she said. "It was inspiring and approached many different publishers, tryemotional because every single adoption ing to convince them her book idea was of story was unique." value. Brennan's own story about her experience To help give the project further validation, adopting daughter Diana she worked to find in 1999 is also told in the "It takes an incredible amount famous Canadians who book. She felt it was of energy to adopt, whether had experienced adopimportant to share her you adopt internationally or tion. family's experience of domestically." Some of the people their private, open adopshe managed to contion if she was asking Deborah Brennan nect with were hockey Author strangers to do the same. player Hayley "When you get into the Wickenheiser and adoption process, you have to focus in on an musician Jeff Healey. area, or you will drive yourself crazy," she She said her interview with Healey, who said. passed away this March, was especially emo"It takes an incredible amount of energy tional. Healey was adopted as a young boy. to adopt, whether you adopt internationally "I cried at all of them, but one of the most or domestically." extraordinary two hours I spent during the Labours of Love also features chapters whole experience was with Jeff Healey," she with information by social workers, said. "He was so genuine. He's just a neat guy Children's Aid Society staff, psychologists who wanted to tell his story and he wanted to Masterworks of Oakville opens season with Handel By Tina Depko OAKVILLE BEAVER STAFF Masterworks of Oakville is launching its new season this week with the presentation of a major musical work. The community chorus and orchestra is performing Handel's oratorio, Judas Maccabaeus, on Friday and Saturday. There will be a chorus of 65 and a 30member orchestra, making it a must-see concert, according to Charles Demuynck, artistic director. "This piece is very much like Handel's Messiah, but it is quite rarely done," he said. "The chorus finds it an extremely rewarding musical experience and they pass that enthu- siasm on to the audience." For those who might not be familiar with the term, an oratorio is a musical work for chorus, orchestra and soloists, usually based on a story that is religious in nature. The oratorio that will be presented this weekend by Masterworks of Oakville tells the story of the triumph of the Jewish warriorhero Judas Maccabaeus over the invading enemies of the Israelites. Handel wrote the work in 1746, five years after Messiah. It was first performed in London at the Covent Garden Theatre the following year. By the time of Handel's death in 1759, Judas Maccabaeus had become the composer's second most popular oratorio, after Messiah. This week's performance of the oratorio features soprano Janet Obermeyer, mezzosoprano Erica Iris Huang, tenor John Janisse and bass Giles Tomkins. A special guest at the concert is the St. Andrew Children's Choir. Masterworks of Oakville chorus members hail from across the Greater Toronto Area, with most coming from Oakville. Although it is a community choir, Demuynck said the musicality of the group is high. "The choir does a really good job and they are very well trained," he said. "They work very hard at the music and rise to the challenge. See Musical page 30 Artistic Director Charles Demuynck