Week 18: Celebrating moms!

[Liz]

I thought that with Mother's Day coming up this weekend, it'd be a good time to talk about the best mother-figures in books.

When thinking about moms or mom-like figures in books, lots of titles come to mind:
Anne of Green Gables
Little House on the Prairie
Little Women
Harry Potter
Gone With the Wind

However, it took me a little bit of time to think about which characters I actually wanted to talk about, and I settled on two: Jessie Alden from The Boxcar Children and Catelyn Stark from A Song of Ice and Fire.

I haven't read any of The Boxcar Children books in a long time, yet I remember almost disliking Jessie when I was first introduced to her, way back when I was a little kid. She was always so headstrong and commanding with her brothers and sisters. Often, it was her planning or motherly instincts that helped the children survive another adventure. Of course, as I got to know the character better, I grew to love her and accepted that sometimes a demanding older sister is a good thing.

Lady Catelyn Stark isn't a flawless character, and that's why I like her so much. She despises the bastard son that her husband brought into her house, and in the book, she's a lot more cruel about it than is portrayed in the show. She is fierce and loves her children above all else. She is willing to lie, kill and be killed to protect them. And finally Lady Stoneheart (show watchers: I'm sorry but you'll have to read the books to understand what I'm talking about here) is a bad ass!



Share with the group which mother-figures have stood out to in your reading.

[J]

I can't think of the best mothers from any of the books I have read recently or in the past... I can tell you one who won't be receiving a Mother's Day card or thank you...Corrine Foxworth... that is for sure... and just in case you don't know who she is check out this wonderful novel by V.C. Andrews... Flowers in the Attic

[Liz]

Haha, good call, Jennifer. She probably deserves "The worst mother ever" award.