This weekend Adam and I took a jaunt to MarsCon, a science fiction convention in Williamsburg, Virginia, to see a favorite author. Jim Butcher answered questions and signed books for the horde of fans, including people who traveled hundreds of miles. His humor and the reading of upcoming Ghost Story were not enough to draw readers in those numbers or from those distances; they came, like me, to experience the camaraderie of a shared world. It made me think. Each time we read, write, paint, or perform, we are participants in world building and we connect with others in that world. For me, the magic of conventions and author events is gathering to share the story world in this world. For those not able to make it, I offer a brief clip from the Q&A on Saturday (please forgive the shoddy camera work).
The clip ends just before Jim announces Ghost Story's release date was moved from April to July 2011. We all groaned, but we know we'll sustain the story world no matter how long the wait.
PS If you haven't read through Changes, the video contains spoilers.
In honor of the great women in my life, I present a list of recent reads and long-time favorite books that feature moms or mother figures I love. Some of these might make good gifts, while others are books I read to appreciate the sufferings and joys of motherhood.
Aunt Rachel takes in main character Kit when she has nowhere to go. Hannah, the solitary old woman beside the pond, gives me the feeling of soft protection, enveloping warmth, and supporting grace that comes from Mom.
Mrs. Murry is a single mother of four when the story opens. She is a scientist who still finds time for hot chocolate with her wayward teen. You can see why Meg later becomes a great mother.
Maybe you shouldn't give these to mom until after you've read them. These books capture the sufferings and sacrifices of motherhood as Mrs. Lev loves and supports her son and husband who are often at odds.
Maya Angelou's letters to the daughter she never had illuminate a sliver of what we can learn from all women, not just those who raise us or have children.
I'm waiting for "one of these things isn't like the others" to start playing, but this book shows how a mother's selfless fight for her child can transform her from a character I loathed since page fifty, book one to a sympathetic character whose actions moved me to tears.
Three contrasting mothers and embodiments of motherhood form the heart of the novel. It starts off with the question, "Are you my grandmother," and becomes an emotional, paradigm-changing search for how to define a mother.
What about you? Who are your favorite literary moms? What books changed, expanded, or shaped your thoughts on motherhood?
