For mom, mom-to-be, and grandma, Happy Mother’s Day!

Books for Adults for Mother’s Day by various authors

c.2025,

Various publishers                               

$26.99 – $30.00                    

Various page counts

Breakfast in bed, or a nicely-colored picture?

If you’re a mother, you’d probably gladly take both. Or flowers, maybe? Or how about settling for two hours of uninterrupted peace and quiet and one of these great books about motherhood and being someone’s Mom…

Without a doubt, if you’re somebody’s mother, your experiences are not the same as any other Mom’s in the world – but did you ever wonder how other mothers do it? In “Four Mothers” by Abigail Leonard (Algonquin Books of Chapel Hill, $30), you’ll read about how mothers in Japan, Kenya, Finland, and here in the U.S. care for their babies, survive, and thrive. This is a fascinating first-year account of  others’ support systems, parental leave, social issues, personal thoughts, and uplifting stories.

Speaking of challenges, here’s a tale of motherhood you don’t often see: “Mainline Mama: A Memoir” by Keeonna Harris (Amistad, $26.99) is the story of motherhood and prison walls. It’s Harris’ own story, of teen pregnancy, an incarcerated partner, and raising a child with input that comes with a physical wall between parents. In here, Harris also advocates strongly for help and compassion for mothers who are in her shoes, which is a must-read, if you know how essential community support is to being a Mom.

For the mother who’s struggled to have a baby, “Held Together” by Rebecca N. Thompson, MD (HarperOne, $29.99) will be golden.

After a series of medical issues caused the loss of her pregnancies, Thompson came to understand that being a doctor didn’t insulate her from feeling lost and alone in her grief. This book is a result of those emotions; here, more than a dozen of her patients, friends, and colleagues weigh in on their pregnancies, their troubles, hope, loss, happiness, wishes fulfilled, life with toddlers, and their feelings about the first years of parenthood. The result is a book that seems like a long series of comfort and camaraderie from friends who’ve been there, which may be a much-needed balm to a new Mom.

And finally, ask any mother about her kids and be prepared for a long conversation. Or a book like “Through Mom’s Eyes: Simple Wisdom from Mothers Who Raised Extraordinary Humans” from Today Show host Sheinelle Jones (Putnam, $29).

Here, Jones asked the mothers of more than a dozen celebrities how they reared their famous kids, but this isn’t just random, wide advice: she interviewed the mother of the Jonas Brothers on self-compassion. She talked to Padma Lakshmi’s mother on paying attention to your child. She talked to Lin-Manuel Miranda’s mother about nurturing a child’s talents, and Tyra Banks’ mom discusses setting your child up for the future. This is a fun book to read, great for star-watchers, and informative, too.

If these books aren’t quite what you want to read, if you need more instruction, or more topic-focused books, be sure to ask your favorite bookseller or librarian for help. They’ll have all kinds of suggestions that are perfect for now, for Mother’s Day, for table, sofa, or bedside.