Motherless Mothers: How Losing a Mother Shapes the Parent You Become

"Edelman illuminates the transformative power of understanding mother loss [and] offers essential wisdom." — Library Journal

When Hope Edelman, author of the New York Times bestseller Motherless Daughters, became a parent, she found herself revisiting the loss of her mother in ways she had never anticipated. Now the mother of two young girls, Edelman set out to learn how the loss of a mother to death or abandonment can affect the ways women raise their own children.

In Motherless Mothers, Edelman uses her own story as a prism to reveal the unique anxieties and desires that these women experience as they raise their children without the help of a living maternal guide. In an impeccably researched, luminously written book enriched by the voices of the mothers themselves—and filled with practical insight and advice from experienced professionals—she examines their parenting choices, their triumphs, and their fears, and offers motherless mothers the guidance and support they want and need.

When Hope Edelman, author of the New York Times bestseller Motherless Daughters, became a parent, she found herself revisiting the loss of her mother in ways she had never anticipated. Now the mother of two young girls, Edelman set out to learn how the loss of a mother to death or abandonment can affect the ways women raise their own children.

In Motherless Mothers, Edelman uses her own story as a prism to reveal the unique anxieties and desires that these women experience as they raise their children without the help of a living maternal guide. In an impeccably researched, luminously written book enriched by the voices of the mothers themselves—and filled with practical insight and advice from experienced professionals—she examines their parenting choices, their triumphs, and their fears, and offers motherless mothers the guidance and support they want and need.

“Absorbing...insightful...a moving and valuable treatment of a neglected subject.” - New York Times Book Review

“A heartfelt and practical work.” - Los Angeles Times

“Smart...Edelman maps the sorrow and longing felt by mothers who are motherless themselves. “ - The Oregonian

"Fascinating...Edelman illuminates the transformative power of understanding mother loss [and] offers essential wisdom." - Library Journal

"Edelman’s voice, suffused with fierce maternal love, joins the candid recollections from motherless mothers of all ages and backgrounds. She presents emotionally charged concepts in clear, memorable terms...to encourage frank, cathartic discussion." - Publishers Weekly

“A wonderful new book...it will help you and make you cry.” - Jacquelyn Mitchard, Tribune Media Services

“Offers hope...a cathartic book.” - Toledo Blade

“An important book. One that will help so many people.” - New York Newsday