Have mother, will travel
What awaits them is an extraordinary, often hilarious journey through twenty cities and twelve countries–one that includes mishaps, mayhem, and unexpected joys, from a passport-eating elephant to a calamitous camel ride around the Pyramids–and finally making peace with their tumultuous past in the lavender fields of France, where they live for the last four months of the trip. Seeing how self-possessed and community-minded twentysomethings are in other countries broadens Mia’s perspective, helping her grow, and grow up. Claire uses the trip to examine her broken relationship with her own mother, a Holocaust survivor, and to create a vision for her second act. Watching her mom assess half a century of life, Mia comes to know her as Claire has always known Mia–as all mothers know their daughters–better than anyone else, and often better than themselves.
Wiser for what they’ve learned from women in other cultures, and from each other, they return with a deepened sense of who they are and where they want to go–and with each embracing the mature friendship they’ve discovered and the profound love they share.
Alternating between Claire and Mia’s compelling and distinct voices, “Have Mother, Will Travel” is a testament to the power and beauty of the mother-daughter relationship, one that illuminates possibilities for our own lives.
I really enjoyed the mother and daughter relationship. Some of the history was not interesting to me, but I am not much of a history person. Watching the mother and daughter react to each other and circumstances was enlightening. The surprise for me was how often I related to the daughters perspective.
The mother ( Claire ) spoke of her mothers influence. It touched me when Claire spoke of slowing down her steps to spend time with her mother. My mother passed away this past year. She had parkinsons. So we had to slow down our steps and our speech to spend time with my mom. It brought back many memories for me. It also made me hope my girls will slow down with me, as I slow down.
I really need to pick up a copy of this!
Have a great week of reading 😀
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This is definitely worth reading. I passed my copy on to my other daughter. If you read it, let me know what you think.
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