Every Mother Is a Daughter: The Neverending Quest for Success, Inner Peace, and a Really Clean Kitchen (Recipes and Knitting Patterns Included)

These authors avoid the pitfalls of the often saccharine mother-daughter memoir by interspersing humorous anecdotes within a solid framework of stories of mom Sheila's dark upbringing during the 1940s and daughter Perri's current struggle to keep her own life as a mother, doctor, writer and avid knitter under control. The two exchange ideas, conflicting memories of past events and even gentle criticisms in chapters such as "There Are No Old Babies" and "Milking Reindeer." Readers will appreciate the honesty between the pair as Sheila writes about growing up with abusive and distant parents and her experience as a working mother in New Jersey during the 1960s, while Perri struggles to "have it all" in 2005, consistently feeling as though something, or someone, has been forgotten along the way. The mother-daughter duo triumph over hectic schedules and physical distance through their love of writing and travel, ending with reminiscences of their trip to India to visit the Taj Mahal. This is a treasure for any generation. (Apr.)