I thoroughly enjoy Cathy Glass. I have so much respect for how she opens her home and her heart (and her family does the same) for foster children. She's been doing it for years in "short term" foster situations (which can be more than a year). This case is unusual in that the child isn't initially really being fostered. Michael's mother died when he was a toddler, and now, when he is 8, his father is dying of lung cancer. Michael's father, Patrick, a very kind, loving, and wise father, wishes his son to get to know the foster family before he dies, both so that he can see that the foster family is a good fit, and so that Michael can become comfortable with them before it is forced on him. I loved Michael and Patrick and felt such sympathy for everyone in this book because they were all losing something. Keep the hankies close at hand. Recommended.