The snake-stone - Berlie Doherty

James is adopted. He knows that to work out his future he has to make sense of his past. He embarks on a journey to find his birth-mother who tells her own story in this moving and powerful novel.

James's adoptive parents are proud of his talent and determination. He's in training for the Junior National Diving Competition. But when he discovers the snake-stone in a box with his other 'belongings' from his time as an abandoned baby, he determines to set out on a quest to find his birth mother. He must make sense of his past if he is to work out his future. James travels to the Derbyshire Peak District to begin his search. Events leading up to James conception and birth are told in his birth-mother's own voice, in flashbacks, and the most moving, poignant and powerful story is told.