Autobiography and Memoir
Far from Heaven: The Sarah King Story
Coming 2028
Over twenty-five foster home, group home, and orphanage placements. Seventeen schools. Virtually no friends. One life no system gets to erase.
About the Book
Far from Heaven: The Sarah King Story is both autobiography and memoir: a direct, reflective, and deeply personal account of a life shaped by Alberta's foster-care system, adoption, disability, faith, trauma, creativity, and survival. It follows Sarah King from infancy and childhood through adulthood, including the public milestones and private truths that cannot be understood through official records alone.
The Story
Made a permanent ward as an infant, Sarah moved through more than thirty-five placements and attended seventeen schools before becoming part of Alberta's first open adoption at age thirteen. The book traces the instability, institutional decisions, abuse, disability, faith, relationships, work, art, music, writing, and hard-won independence that followed. It also confronts the deep and sometimes dark secrets hidden beneath the simplified versions of her life told by systems, professionals, and other adults.
More of the Story
The memoir names Alberta's foster-care system directly and examines how policies, placements, schools, medical systems, disability services, and individual decisions affected one child over decades. It does not present survival as a clean inspirational arc. Alongside achievement are grief, anger, contradiction, humour, faith, creative work, and the continuing effects of trauma. The book also explores Sarah's later life as a writer, musician, artist, coach, mentor, and founder of her own creative and professional projects.
Behind the Story
I am writing this book because too much of my life has existed in files written by other people. Those records may describe placements, diagnoses, meetings, and decisions, but they cannot fully describe what it was like to live through them. Far from Heaven is my chance to place my own voice at the centre, name what happened, honour the people who helped, confront those who caused harm, and tell the truths that were buried for too long.
Book Summary
Far from Heaven: The Sarah King Story is a raw, literary, and ultimately hopeful account of surviving systems that repeatedly failed to see the whole person. It is not only the story of what happened to Sarah King. It is the story of how she continued creating a life after others had written one for her.
© Sarah King · Sakura Studios