A set of twins born Nha Trang, Việt Nam in 1998 end up raised apart–one adopted by a biological relative in Việt Nam and the second adopted with another little girl from her orphanage by a family in Illinois. Through a sequence of events the twins are reunited but their story is one of complexities and nuances. In her recently published book, Somewhere Sisters: A Story of Adoption, Identity, and the Meaning of Family, journalist Erika Hayasaki tells the story of these three young women.

Throughout the book Erika also contextualizes their experiences with the history of twin studies, intercountry and transracial adoption, and the nature-versus-nurture debate. 

Erika Hayaski is a journalist based out of Southern California and a professor in the literary journalism program at the University of California-Irvine. She is the author of The Death Class stories. Her work has appeared in The New York Times Magazine, Wired, The Atlantic and other publications.

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