mothers and daughters

Mothers and daughters share special relationships that can be fraught with incredible obstacles. BORROWED NAMES (the title is taken from a phrase from Madame Curie's entry) by Jeannine Atkins (Holt, 2010) is an exquisite examination, in poetry, of the mother daughter relationships of Laura Ingalls Wilder, Madame C J Walker and Marie Curie. Each of these successful women had equally successful daughters. Atkins pulls from history to form these intriguing stories that explore the complexities of mothers and daughters working together and apart. Using history as a base, Atkins imagines those moments between mother and daughter that shape the rest of each of their lives. The language is exquisitely wrought without intruding on the narrative flow. Never have I been so riveted with the lives of women I thought I knew well. However, knowing them as people, especially as mothers, is a revelation.