Dismantling the Mother Shelf

EXPANDING OUR THINKING ABOUT WOMEN’S STORIES OF PARENTHOOD

THE first time I was called Mom by another adult, my husband and I were out for dinner, our firstborn dozing beside us in her car seat. “What will you have, Mom?” our server asked. I looked down, as if to locate myself: That’s me she’s talking to. It didn’t matter that I was also a partner, a teacher, a colleague, a daughter, a sister, a friend. What I most clearly and emblematically was now, I realized, was a Mom. I thought of this moment often during my journey to publish my debut book, Mothers and Other Fictional Characters: A Memoir in Essays (Chronicle Prism, 2025). The first time my mind flashed back to it was during the submission process. I’d prepared myself, as all authors must, for rejection. The…

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Poets & Writers (Digital) - 1 Issue, March/April 2025

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