by Damla
Happy Mother’s Day to all the mothers and mother figures out there!
Today, we celebrate the wide range of experiences on motherhood, from relatable to singularly strange, eccentric to traditional, yet all remarkable.
Take a look at our picks that shine the spotlight on unforgettable, powerful, and certainly remarkable portrayals of motherhood in literature:
“With its clear eyes on contemporary womanhood and sharp take on structures of power, Nightbitch is an outrageously original, joyfully subversive read about the extraordinary transformation of an exhausted mother that will make you want to howl in laughter and recognition.”
The School for Good Mothers – Jessamine Chan
“In this taut and explosive debut novel, one lapse in judgement lands a young mother in a government reform program where custody of her child hangs in the balance.This propulsive, witty page-turner explores the perils of “perfect” upper-middle-class parenting, the violence enacted upon women by the state and each other, and the boundless love a mother has for her daughter.”
The Housekeeper and The Professor – Yoko Ogawa
“Each morning, the Professor and the Housekeeper are introduced to one another. The Professor may not remember what he had for breakfast, but his mind is still alive with elegant mathematical equations from the past. With each new equation, the professor, the housekeeper, and her 10-year-old son forge an affection more mysterious than imaginary numbers, and a bond that runs deeper than memory.”
Matriarch: A Memoir – Tina Knowles
“Tina Knowles, the mother of Beyoncé Knowles-Carter, Solange Knowles, and bonus daughter Kelly Rowland, is known the world over as a determined, self-possessed, self-aware, and wise woman who raised and inspired some of the great artists of our time. Matriarch is a glorious chronicle of a life like none other and a testament to the world-changing power of Black motherhood.”
“Staring unflinchingly into the abyss of slavery, this spellbinding novel transforms history into a story as powerful as Exodus and as intimate as a lullaby. Sethe was born a slave and escaped to Ohio, but years later she is still not free. She has too many memories of the beautiful farm where so many hideous things happened. And her new home is haunted by the ghost of her baby, who died nameless and whose tombstone is engraved with a single word: Beloved.”
“A mother faces a terrible choice as Ireland slides into totalitarianism. The country is in the grip of a government turning towards tyranny and when her husband disappears, Eilish finds herself caught within the nightmare logic of a society that is quickly unravelling. How far will she go to save her family? And what – or who – is she willing to leave behind?”
“An extraordinary debut novel from prize-winning Irish writer, Roisin O’Donnell about one woman escaping her controlling husband to start a new life with her two young daughters. Tense, beautiful, and underpinned by an unassailable love, hope and resilience, this is the story of one woman’s bid to start over.”
“The story of a mother, her son, a locked room and the outside world. Told entirely in the language of the energetic, pragmatic five-year-old Jack, Room is a celebration of resilience and the limitless bond between parent and child, a brilliantly executed novel about what it means to journey from one world to another.”
Want more? Check out more titles that feature remarkable mother characters:
