Motherland : Writings by Irish American Women about Mothers and Daughters

• ISBN13: 9780688175863
• ISBN10: 0688175864
• Format: Paperback
• Copyright: 2000-04-01
• Publisher: Lightning Source Inc

Summary

The writings in this collection, fiction and nonfiction, are written from the perspectives of Irish American mothers and daughters. From Angela's Ashes to Riverdance, Irish literature and art are capturing the American imagination as never before. Ireland's literary legacy has taken root in American soil, and this dazzling anthology captures the spirit of this Celtic renaissance.Motherland presents a poignant collection of Irish American women's writings about the mother-daughter bond in all its variety: sometimes a source of strength and solace, sometimes of sorrow and resentment, but always and everywhere central to the author's identity.Acclaimed anthologist Caledonia Kearns has collected more than twenty pieces of fiction and nonfiction to create a rich tapestry of emotion, humor, and truth, featuring the work of contemporary writers, such as Anna Quindlen, Mary Gordon, Doris Kearns Goodwin, Mary Cantwell, Martha Manning, Rosemary Mahoney, Susan Minot, and Maureen Howard, along with voices from past eras like Margaret Sanger, Mother Jones, and M.F.K. Fisher.This book speaks directly to the hearts of every mother and daughter. Irish or not, readers will find treasures to cherish, wisdom to live by, and words that sing with the spirit of the Celtic soul. It's a wonderful gift for St. Patrick's Day, Mother's Day, or any occasion when eloquence is the order of the day.

Table of Contents

Acknowledgments	xi
Introduction	xiii
``The Bonesetter'' [1996]	1	(8)
Carolyn Curtin Alessio
From Lace Curtain [1948]	9	(14)
Ellin Mackay Berlin
From Uphill Walkers [199]	23	(5)
Madeline Blais
``The Eldest Child'' [1968]	28	(10)
Maeve Brennan
From Manhattan, When I Was Young [1995]	38	(13)
Mary Cantwell
From The Mermaids Singing [1998]	51	(7)
Lisa Carey
From What Girls Learn [1997]	58	(13)
Karin Cook
``My Mother and Politics'' [1972]	71	(6)
Mary Doyle Curran
``Mother and `Miss E.''' [1988]	77	(6)
M.F.K. Fisher
From The Rebel Girl [1955]	83	(11)
Elizabeth Gurley Flynn
From Wait Till Next Year [1997]	94	(9)
Doris Kearns Goodwin
``My Mother Is Speaking from the Desert'' From Shadow Man [1996]	103	(17)
Mary Gordon
From The Autobiography of Mother Jones [1925]	120	(7)
Mary Harris ``Mother'' Jones
``Trinity'' [1999]	127	(10)
Kerry Herlihy
``Charting Life with a Daughter'' [1977]	137	(5)
Maureen Howard
``Motherlove'' [1999]	142	(5)
Caledonia Kearns
``The Child as Houseguest'' [1978]	147	(5)
Jean Kerr
From A Likely Story: One Summer with Lillian Hellman [1998]	152	(19)
Rosemary Mahoney
From Chasing Grace: Reflections of a Catholic Girl, Grown Up [1996]	171	(18)
Martha Manning
``Wildflowers'' from Monkeys [1986]	189	(12)
Susan Minot
``The Vocabulary of Absence'' [1999]	201	(22)
Helena Mulkerns
``In the Beginning'' from Living Out Loud [1988]	223	(6)
Anna Quindlen
``The Need to Feed'' [1997]	229	(8)
Carolyn Ramsay
``The Goal'' From The New Motherhood [1922]	237	(6)
Margaret Higgins Sanger
Contributors	243	(6)
Permissions	249