Forbidden Orphanage Outside the Forbidden City

Becky Cerling Powers is a retired journalist and author or compiler of several books, including Forbidden Orphanage Outside the Forbidden City; Sticky Fingers, Sticky Minds (parenting); and My Roots Go Back to Loving (El Paso family stories). She loves to listen to people’s stories and teach kids to write. You can find more about Becky at www.beckypowers.com.

“Rich with research and firsthand biographical details, Forbidden Orphanage Outside the Forbidden City takes the reader on a journey to the China of 1921-1951. Laura Richards, a Presbyterian missionary nurse, founded Canaan House for cast-off babies from destitute families, and stayed in China when other foreigners were evacuated. With the support of friends, dressed and eating like a Chinese peasant, Laura kept her 200 beloved children alive through the violence, famine and persecution of the Japanese invasion and the Maoist era. This is the inspiring story of an ordinary woman—but a woman of action, empowered by extraordinary faith, dedication and love.” — Caroline Kurtz, author of A Road Called Down on Both Sides: Growing Up in Ethiopia and America"[Powers] describes a faith and dedication that inspires awe. And [she] places it all in context so well. How will it be received in the wider world? As an inspiring piece of history? As a challenge to faithfulness and commitment? As a threat? Maybe all of the above. How will it be received in China, or by overseas Chinese believers? I can only imagine. I wonder how the book can be positioned so as to provoke wide readership…" - Bill McConnell, retired assistant to the president of InterVarsity Christian Fellowship“The Forbidden Orphanage in the Forbidden City is a gripping story of faith in the face of hardship, and courage under dire circumstances. Becky Cerling Powers tells the story of Laura Richardson’s “children” with detail that brings to life the gritty reality of life in China in the famine years, the wars, and the takeover of the regime. Today’s incredibly modern China paints over the generational pain that today’s grandparents carry hidden in their hearts.” — *Anna McShane, global writer and longtime university professor, Beijing *pseudonym“A mesmerizing true story. I couldn't put it down, not for suspense, but rather the captivating nature of the story. Well, written. Not maudlin. Sensitive and accurate portrayal of 20th century political and cultural China. Author does not preach nor does she hide the realities of missionary life.” — Sally Mittelstadt, educator and writer, www.theoldcountrystore.com"Becky Cerling Powers tells the extraordinary story of Laura Richards and the Canaan Home with the meticulousness of a historian and the skill of a master storyteller. A tale of war and revolution, faith and betrayal, Forbidden Orphanage Outside the Forbidden City offers an unflinching yet empathetic account of the missionary experience in China and a unique perspective on a tumultuous period in that country’s modern history." — Jack Neubauer, author of The Adoption Plan: China and the Remaking of Global Humanitarianism"A fascinating account... Powers relies on letters, memoirs, journal entries, interviews, and news accounts to reconstruct Richard's biography. In her Endnotes, Powers acknowledges that her writing 'is creative, using the strategies of novel writing' (301). She reconstructs scenes and conversation imaginatively... I thoroughly enjoyed Powers' biography." — Sr. Sarah Schwartzberg, OSB, Spirit & Life