In Mother Words

By Susan Byrum Rountree

No Synopsis Available.

• Format: Paperback
• Language: English
• ISBN: 1880849615
• ISBN13: 9781880849613
• Release Date: April 2003
• Publisher: Chapel Hill Press
• Length: 96 Pages
• Weight: 2.40 lbs.

Customer Reviews

A Must for all Mothers!

The simplicity and complexity of motherhood seem so much clearer when looked at through the eyes and words of the author. While many of us get bogged down with the daily details of raising our children, 'In Mother Words' shows us that these tasks will be our most treasured memories. This book underscores how beautiful, challenging, loving, and sentimental the gift of life can be, and everyone should savor the journey! If you are a mother, have a mother (!) or miss your mother as I do, this book is a must have for bookshelves or nightstands everywhere!

Motherhood in Fast Forward Mode

Read the second essay, and you'll know why this book hooked me: a deceptively plainsong descriptive of raising a young son, Susan B. Rountree captures here, in seemingly fast forward mode, the little pleasures, the tensions, the wistful passing, of modern motherhood. But wait! The details are there, too: the terrible twos, deciding on toys, a pair of corduroy pants, his first day at kindergarten, then a teen, all too soon perhaps, playing guitar for Mom. The author's strategy in this little blue book seems to be to capture the lives of her children by shooting movie frames of the finest moments of everyday life, then cutting and splicing them into the secret joys of motherhood. Susan Byrum Rountree is a writer you can't afford to pass up, clearly a tender, observant woman we would all be proud to call mother. I'm sure her kids would agree.

Mothers know

Even the title contains Susan Rountree's wit and it's the same wit she shows throughout this fine hand-sized book. And she tells it like it is--motherhood is an adventure, full of joy, and painful, but the results can be worth every second. As I read this book I kept thinking, "I wish I had a mother like her," and "I wish I'd been a mother like her." It's such a good book I'm sending it to my daughter for Mother's Day and I know she'll recognize the feelings and experiences Rountree openly shares with us. When you read it, you don't feel so alone.

Perfect for more than Mother's Day

A new adjective needs to be invented to describe Susan Byrum Rountree's writing."Poignant," "joyful," "bittersweet," "vulnerable," "honest," "candid," "wise"-- all of these apply, but none are sufficient in themselves.Read "In Mother Words," and you'll see what I mean. This is a book about a familiar topic-- one woman's take on motherhood-- which the author aptly describes as the real "oldest profession." Her essays will ring a bell in just about every reader's own memory. The collection starts with a newborn and ends with sending a child to college. And there's everything in between.Familiar, yes. Yet this take is uncommon. It could be because Susan comes from the little town of Scotland Neck, NC, and her heart is soaked in the talent and tradition of Southern literature. It could be because she's got long experience as an essayist, works hard at her craft, and expects so much of herself. It could be because her passion for being a mother, and her love for her children, translates one for one to the beauty of the words on the page. Or all of the above.In any case, buy and read. It's perfect for Mother's Day-- a small, beautifully produced book which fits in a box with a pin to go with it, or in a gift bag with a scarf or sweater. It can easily be read in one sitting, or savored one essay a day for weeks.I discovered Susan in a newspaper where good writing is the norm. But her words just popped off the page. The quality of this writing makes "In Mother Words" a book for any day, anyone. For a mother, for yourself, for whoever appreciates a downright good read.Come to think of it, maybe that "good" is all the adjective you really need.