Mother’s Day only comes around once a year (most commonly on the second Sunday in May, but some countries celebrate mums at other times, such as Spring Equinox or International Women’s Day) so when it does you have to make it count. After all, our mums do so much for us and this is the one day each year that’s all about them. So on May 14th this year, why not treat your mum to to something she can enjoy and expand her horizons with.
For the Mum Who Loves a Little Mystery…
The Mystery Writers of America Cookbook: Wickedly Good Meals and Desserts to Die For by Kate White
This unconventional cookbook features breakfasts, appetisers, desserts, cocktails and other fabulous goodies from a number of mystery authors and their characters. The book also offers multiple sidebars that link the food to the fiction— like poisons people used to plant in their gardens, and an explainer about how “red herring” went from the plate to the page.
For the Mum Who Sees Everything…
Capture the Moment by Sarah Wilkerson
This book is both beautiful to page through and a thorough instruction manual for budding photographers. More than 100 contributors from Clickin Moms, the largest female-photographer social network, have included photographs and advice for capturing basic, understated moments in everyday life and beautiful ways to chronicle family in photos. She’ll be inspired to pick up her camera and finally use it without having to attend an actual photography class.
For the Mum who’s had enough of trinkets and dusting…
The Art of Discarding: How to get rid of clutter and find joy by Nagisa Tatsumi
Before there was The Life Changing Magic of Tidying Up by Marie Kondo, there was this book that inspired it all. Published for the first time in English, Nagisa Tatsumi gives easy advice on how to get rid of things that are just cluttering your life, instead of adding value to it. Additionally, she gives guidelines on how to acquire less stuff in the first place, so what she calls “accumulation syndrome” doesn’t return. Tatsumi believes that by changing our attitudes about our possessions we can rid ourselves of all the stuff we don’t actually need, opening the door to find joy in a clutter-free life.
For the Mum who loves a story…
Stop Here, This Is the Place by Susan Conley and Winky Lewis
This book is a string of memories between two women. Every day for a year, Lewis sent Conley a photograph of her children, and Conley responded with a story that spoke to the photo. What resulted is a collection of moments and stories that chronicle a child’s growth and a mother’s love for her family.
Happy Family by Tracey Barone
Abandoned and then adopted when she was just a baby, Cheri finds herself 40 years old, in a bad place with her own parents and her job, and trying to have a baby of her own. But she is no stranger to dysfunction or reinventing herself when she needs to. A story of imperfect characters, who, despite constant surprises, pull through the difficult times in life.
For the Mum who could rule the world…and often does…
We Were Feminists Once by Andi Zeisler
Mums with an interest in politics will enjoy this history of the Feminist movement that follows the term from when it was once regarded as a dirty word to the present day, where it is plastered on T-shirts and adopted as a brand by celebrities. Throughout the book, Zeisler argues that, although the phrase (and its ideas) have been popularized in the mainstream, the acceptance of the phrase doesn’t mean women are any closer to becoming equal. Touching on movies, advertising, fashion and more, Zeisler explores how the “feminist” world around us has done little to push for real change.
First Women by Kate Andersen Brower
This anthology looks at powerful First Ladies who were often underestimated women who are intelligent, thick-skinned, and as important to their country as their husbands. From Jackie Kennedy to Betty Ford to Michelle Obama, this book reviews their achievements and struggles, and paints a powerful picture of female political leadership.
The Secret History of Wonder Women by Jill Lepore
Wonder Woman was created in 1941, on the brink of World War II, and is the most popular female superhero of all time. Aside from Superman and Batman, she has lasted the longest and commanded the most vast and wildly passionate following. Like every other superhero, Wonder Woman has a secret identity. Unlike others, she also has a secret history. In Jill Lepore’s riveting work of historical detection, Wonder Woman’s story provides the missing link in the history of the struggle for women’s rights, a chain of events that begins with the women’s suffrage campaigns of the early 1900s and ends with the troubled place of feminism a century later.
Enjoy!