In just a few days families everywhere will be celebrating one of the most important people in their lives. Mother’s Day is a complex holiday. For some it’s joyous, for others painful, and for many it’s both. So it’s always difficult to know what to write.

For years, Mother’s Day was incredibly painful for me. It reminded me of what I didn’t have, of how my body was broken, of the children that never were …

Now it’s a symbol of how I persevered and the amazing little girl who made me a mother.

But before I’d put much thought into being a mother myself, Mother’s Day was simpler.

It was a day to honour the woman who held me, raised me, let me twist her hair in my fingers as I cuddled up beside her.

My mother introduced me to the written word and an intense and life long love of books. She taught me to read and, every night before bed, she read to me.

It was our time.

It was my first memory of love.

I couldn’t have been much more than four, and every night we’d climb into Mom and Dad’s bed, me on one side, my big brother on the other, and Mom read Little House On The Prairie to us.

This was my brother’s story. Mine came later, in my own bed.

But they let me listen. 

And not only did I fall in love. I felt love.

I think my brother must have stopped his nightly story time shortly after that series. So, it was just Mom and me.

When, at eleven years old, I finally decided I had outgrown bedtime stories, we still talked about the books we read and exchanged the ones we loved – a tradition that continues today.

My mom encouraged my own writing, proudly telling family and friends about her daughter’s stories (she still does!) and is the first reader for all of my books.

Motherhood plays a strong role in all of my novels, and I often wonder if the strong relationship I have with my own mother is behind that … Maybe.

What’s certain is the role books play in our relationship.

Over the years, so many books have been gifted between us. Books with underlined passages, books we’ve passed on to other loved ones. Books that feel like family.

Now, don’t get me wrong, though it took me A LONG time to warm up to ebooks, I now think they’re great. Truly.

They save money. They save trees. They save space.

But when it comes time to offer a token of love, a book you can hold in your hands is where it’s at. A book you can share. A book that can be passed on for countless more to enjoy.

So, if you’re looking for that perfect gift for your mom this year – I highly suggest a book. 

A book that touched your heart, perhaps, or one you’ve been aching to read yourself.

With our addiction to screens, giving a book is more than just giving a story, it’s encouraging someone to step away from technology and take some time just for them – time to relax, to immerse themselves in another world and, hopefully, to close the final page and emerge comforted, challenged, or inspired.

Each of my books looks at the core of a woman at a point in her life where she must wrestle to find the person she was meant to be.

Sometimes the journey is heartbreaking. Usually it’s inspiring. Always, it’s full of hope.

If you’re looking for the perfect book of mine to gift this Mother’s Day, you can check them all out out here, categorized to help you pick the right book for the mom in your life.

Or, simply hit reply to send me an email and tell me what kind of stories your mother likes. I’d be happy to offer a suggestion!

If you ARE a mom hoping for a bookish gift, be sure to give your loved ones a pretty clear hint – like maybe SHARE THIS LINK  on your favourite social media platform with a note about how any one of these books would be perfect for the mother in their life.

In the words of Neil Gaiman:

“Books make great gifts because they have whole worlds inside of them. And it’s much cheaper to buy somebody a book than it is to buy them the whole world!”

Read on, my friend.

Charlene

P.S.
Want a quick snippet of the role motherhood plays in each of my books? Read below!

In my Beneath the Silence, so many of Brooke’s problems and so much of her pain could have been avoided if her mother had only had the courage and strength to be honest … thankfully, life is a journey, and though her mother’s lies had consequences that couldn’t be erased, it’s never too late for truth to make a difference.

In the Behind Our Lives trilogy, Kali’s journey is intricately wrapped up with her role as a mother. Her fierce love for her son is what many readers connect to most about the book.

Jennifer’s story in Skinny Me essentially starts with the life-altering loss of her mother – and that absence in her life plays a huge role in realizing who she wants and is meant to be.

In Where There Is Life, the love and patient encouragement of Autumn’s mother is part of what gives her the strength to step out of her misery and begin to live again.

Essentially, Eloise’s story in By What We Love is all about finding a way to heal and become her own person after her mother’s choices irreparably altered Eloise’s life.

Finally, Forever In My Heart, Whispers of Hope, and Before I Knew You are so wrapped up in mother-daughter relationships, the desire for motherhood, and the consequences when those desires are not fulfilled the way we hope, that I can’t even come close to getting into it in this message.

If you want to know more, as well as some of my own personal journey toward motherhood – you can read all about it here.

Join the conversation!