Blog Archives
Notes from Motherland: The Wild Adventure of Raising Humans
Notes From Motherland: The Wild Adventures of Raising Humans is a heartfelt collection of essays capturing the rollercoaster that is motherhood. A tapestry of emotions, struggles, and triumphs, the book offers a raw and honest glimpse into the complex journey of parenting. Each story is a window into the wild world of raising humans, exploring themes from pregnancy expectations and the messiness of motherhood to the bittersweet experience of watching your children leave the nest. It’s a celebration of vulnerability, a testament to the resilience of mothers, and a nod to the universal challenges of nurturing life.
What I loved most about this book is its unflinching honesty. Chris Chandler’s essay, “Leaving the Nest,” captures that sense of raw anxiety and bittersweet freedom when a parent prepares to let their children fly on their own. Her metaphor of hawk parents fiercely protecting their young before they learn to soar perfectly encapsulates that protective instinct mixed with the sadness of separation. I felt Chandler’s pain and uncertainty, the aching yet hopeful anticipation as her sons set off into the world. It was relatable and had me nodding in agreement, thinking about all the messy and conflicted feelings parents experience. The writing was beautiful yet unpretentious, and that emotional punch stayed with me.
Then there’s Sierra Melcher’s “Mother Magic,” which almost feels like a love letter to motherhood. The way she describes those magical, mundane moments, like her child’s blueberry-stained smile or the sleepy snuggles of early morning, made me smile and ache with nostalgia. Melcher beautifully captures the paradox of wanting to savor every moment while knowing that change is inevitable. It’s poetic and deeply immersive, yet she keeps it grounded. Her reflections on raising a child in a foreign land and experiencing every day as an adventure added an extra layer of intrigue. The imagery and sensory details pulled me into her world, making even the simplest events feel significant.
This book is for anyone who wants to understand the complexities of parenthood. It’s messy, poignant, and beautiful. The stories are varied, with each writer bringing a fresh perspective and their unique voice, which keeps the book engaging. I’d recommend Notes From Motherland to anyone craving a deep and emotional read that doesn’t sugarcoat the hardships of raising humans but celebrates the joy and lessons along the way.
Pages: 172 | ASIN : B0CZPNYFYT
Dancing Between the Raindrops: A Daughter’s Reflections on Love and Loss
Dancing Between The Raindrops: A Daughter’s Reflections On Love And Loss by Lisa Braxton is the memoir of Lisa’s family, the love and joy throughout the years as well as the hardships, challenges, grief, and loss that come with being a part of a union as strong as the nuclear family. In this book, Lisa reminisces on her being a painfully shy child growing up in Connecticut, her mother’s writing talent and aspirations, becoming aware of and dealing with racism from a young age, taking care of and losing both parents to cancer as well as dealing with breast cancer herself, and so much more. This heartfelt book is a reflection and an homage to the beauty of life and being human, the basic human needs, emotions, and desires, and the fact that the good and the bad are both essential parts of life.
Lisa writes in a beautiful tone, expressing undeniable gratitude and love towards her family members on each page of the book. Her honesty and raw emotions are what set her work apart from similar memoirs. Reading this piece felt like a lifelong friend sitting down for a coffee and telling me about all the stuff I’ve missed out on from the last time we saw each other. It deals with a lot of sensitive topics, including taking care of an elderly parent when they most need you, grief from losing a loved one, and being discriminated against on a racial level, to name a few.
Each chapter being a story of its own makes the book and its message even more powerful and real. One of the stories that touched me the most early on in the book was one of Lisa’s first times dealing with racism in school. Someone had told the African-American kids to go back to where they came from, and just reading about the way Lisa felt at that moment was heartbreaking. She explains that she felt confused because, yes, she has African ancestry, but how can she go back to a place she had never been to? Furthermore, her parents and grandparents were all born and lived in the U.S. The confusion in that little girl’s mind is something that will stick with me as a reader for a long time.
I highly recommend Lisa Braxton’s Dancing Between The Raindrops: A Daughter’s Reflections On Love And Loss to anyone looking for a poignant and touching memoir. The book is a heartwarming tribute to the universal experience of love and loss.
Pages: 155 | ASIN : B0CW1N2JWN
Making Your Mark | Leaving a Legacy | And then… A Grand Exit That’ll Have Their Tongues Waggin’
Have you ever wondered whether you will have an impact on the world? An experience that, even after our departure, will live on in everyone’s memory? Than Making Your Mark, Leaving a Legacy, And then… A Grand Exit That’ll Have Their Tongues Waggin, by Peter Davidson, speaks about just that phenomenon! It comes with an abundance of ideas, such as starting a collection you can leave for those close to you or succeeding. Some may even consider you a hoarder during the process but giving your children or grandchildren your prized coin collection, season tickets, or concert tickets could be a tremendous amount of fun. It would really be of great importance for your legacy in the long run. Peter Davidson gives ideas from hypothetical situations and real-life examples to leave your mark.
A section of the book includes the celebration of life party and a final farewell for Timothy A. B. Smythe, leaving everyone who knew Timothy and Timothy himself with a smile. It was the best section of the book. Recognizing that his days were numbered, he organized a “Living Wake” with the support of his friends and family. Then, soon after his passing, a wild celebration honored everything about his life. The coffin was modeled after Timothy A.B. Smythe’s favorite vehicle. The entire ceremony was emotional and touching. This scene would leave you in tears.
A great book is presented here. It does a great job of making light of a very horrible circumstance. The author sets out to help readers prepare for what will eventually come and to make the best of the situation, even presenting ways to make it a time to remember for family and friends that remain. A few noteworthy aspects of this book include the author’s constant encouragement to readers to always see the positive.
Overall, the book is enjoyable to read and offers readers a little push to ensure they make a “Grand Exit.” One of those few keepsakes that kept me happy all the way to the finish. I’d give it a perfect score and suggest this book to everyone who has a handle on life and is searching for the next big step.
Pages: 287 | ASIN : B0B3W5YTYZ
LITERARY TITAN 