Ann Hood writes about motherhood like nobody else, from the troubled, pregnant teenager of her novel Ruby, to her bestselling memoir of loss and grief, Comfort. In between Hood has written ten other books as well as popular essays for the New York Times' Modern Love column, Tin House and O: The Oprah Magazine.

In her latest novel, The Red Thread, Hood tells the story of six couples in the process of adopting girls from China. (Hood herself adopted a girl from China after the loss of her five-year-old daughter, Grace, from a virulent form of strep, in 2000.) Each couple has a powerful and emotional motivation behind the decision to adopt, but what makes the book even more moving is Hood's choice to tell the stories of the Chinese mothers who give up their babies, and why. These storylines truly become the "red thread" that connects the families, and their children, from one continent to another, and one history to another. Highly recommended!