The remarkable story of a couple who risked everything to open their home--and their hearts--to answer an abandoned child's wish.

It was a small note buried in the file of a deeply troubled eleven-year-old boy--a plea for a normal life Rich and Sue Miniter couldn't ignore:

The Things I Want MOST:

A family

A fishing pole

A family The Miniters heard in that simple note the voice of a frightened child who wanted what all children want and need: someone to love who would love them in return.

So they brought Mike home to the cozy country inn they'd restored and managed in rural upstate New York. There, over the next year, they would try to make Mike's dream come true. But first they would have to work through the fear, anger, and distrust that accompanied this boy who had lived his whole life with the label "severely emotionally disturbed." For the biggest obstacle to Mike's happiness was Mike himself, who gave the Miniters every reason to give up but one--the power of love.

<!-- This candid and emotionally gripping memoir defines the very meaning of family, as Richard Miniter shares his captivating account of his family's turbulent but redemptive first year with their emotionally-scarred foster son.

When Richard and Sue Miniter decided to open their home--and their hearts--to a foster child, they couldn't imagine the frustrations and joys, the breakthroughs and setbacks, not to mention the emotional toll, that awaited them. Here is the remarkable true story of how their lives changed forever with their decision to answer an abandoned child's wish for THE THINGS I WANT MOST. -->