Synopses & Reviews
This work provides a look at the experience of mothers whose diverse life circumstances put them outside the realm of the traditional good mother. The chapters portray women whose mothering is often maligned, misunderstood or ignored - mothers of exceptional children, adolescents and biracial children; mothers with HIV/AIDS; immigrant, lesbian, homeless, single, adoptive and teen mothers; African American mothers on welfare; and mothers in prison. Using first-person narrative, focus group data, qualitative research and clinical interviewing, these stories challenge dominant cultural stereotypes. The volume provides a way of reframing clinical practice, developmental theory, and public policy away from blaming mothers and toward understanding and respecting their unique adaptations to specific, often difficult, societal demands.
Review
"
Mothering Against the Odds is a groundbreaking, heartbreaking, and ultimately inspiring work about a scandalously neglected subject. This is 'must' reading for everyone who cares about mothers, about children, about families, about social injustice and social change--in short, for everyone who cares." --Paula J. Caplan, PhD, author of
They Say You're Crazy: How the World's Most Powerful Psychiatrists Decide Who's Normal"The authors of this volume, most of whom are mothers themselves, eloquently describe the challenges of 'mothering at the margins.' The stories are poignant, personal, and passionate, actively drawing the reader into the daily struggles and joys of mothering under unusual circumstances. Regardless of the context, each mother brings courage and resilience to her special situation. This book fills a large gap in the literature and must be read by all parents and by policy makers who care about how our children are raised." --Ellen Bassuk, M.D., The Better Homes Fund
"Our society today is anything but a melting pot. We treat any kind of diversity as a negative. Why? This excellent volume brings to light the marginalization of different kinds of mothers whom society both labels and rejects. The strengths and the passions with which these mothers can offer their children need to be respected and even revered by our society. This volume will help that process in all of us." --T. Berry Brazelton, M.D.
Synopsis
We all know what a "good mother" looks like on television and in the popular imagination: typically she is white, heterosexual, and married, and devotes herself full-time to child care. But increasing numbers of women who mother today do not fit this narrow traditional image,and their different experiences of mothering are often maligned, misunderstood, or ignored.This compelling book presents the stories of diverse mothers whose life circumstances place
them outside the mainstream. Filled with the voices of the women themselves, chapters explore the lives of mothers of exceptional children and biracial children; mothers who seek closeness and connection with their adolescentchildren; mothers with HIV/AIDS; immigrant,
homeless, single, lesbian, adoptive, and teen mothers; African American mothers living in poverty; and mothers in prison. Their vivid, heartfelt accounts demonstrate the unique strengths of women struggling to overcome personal and societal barriers and take us beyond labeling entire groups of mothers as normal or deviant, "good" or "bad."
About the Author
Cynthia Garcia Coll, PhD, is Professor of Education, Psychology, and Pediatrics at Brown University. She is the former Director of the Stone Center at Wellesley College.
Janet L. Surrey, PhD, is a Founding Scholar of the Jean Baker Miller Training Institute and Codirector of the Gender Relations Program at the Stone Center, Wellesley College, and attending psychologist at McLean Hospital, Harvard Medical School.
Kathy Weingarten, PhD, is Codirector of the Program in Narrative Therapies at The Family Institute of Cambridge and Assistant Professor of Psychology at Harvard Medical School.
Table of Contents
Introduction
1. Sidelined No More: Promoting Mothers of Adolescents as a Resource for Their Growth and Development, Kathy Weingarten
2. "Exceptional" Mothering in a "Normal" World, Miriam Greenspan
3. Homeless: Mothering at Rock Bottom, Rebecca Koch, Mary T. Lewis, and Wendy Quiñones
4. Immigrant Mothers: What Makes Them High Risk?, Marilyn G. Fraktman
--Conversation One, edited by Kathy Weingarten
5. Yes, I Am a Swan: Reflections on Families Headed by Lesbians and Gay Men, Laura Benkov
6. Safeguarding Wordless Voices in a World of Words, Bonnie Y. Ohye
7. He Needs His Father: The Clinical Discourse and Politics of Single Mothering, Phoebe Kazdin Schnitzer
8. Let Me Suffer So My Kids Won't: African American Mothers Living with HIV/AIDS, Karen Fraser Wyche
--Conversation Two, edited by Kathy Weingarten
9. "Real" Mothers: Adoptive Mothers Resisting Marginalization and Re-Creating Motherhood, Betsy Smith, Janet L. Surrey, and Mary Watkins
10. Against All Odds: Resistance and Resilience in African American Welfare Mothers, Elizabeth Sparks
11. Teen Mothers: Countering the Myths of Dysfunction and Developmental Disruption, Patricia Flanagan
12. Incarcerated Mothers: Crimes and Punishments, Cynthia García Coll, Janet L. Surrey, Phyllis Buccio-Notaro, and Barbara Molla
--Conversation Three, edited by Kathy Weingarten