100 Must-Read Books About Complicated Mothers

Mother Nile is the story of Si, the American-born son of an Irish father and Egyptian mother, who goes on a journey through the winding streets of the City of the Dead in Cairo to solve a half-century-old mystery. When his mother makes an urgent plea on her deathbed, Si knows that he must go to Egypt to uncover the truth about his long-lost half-sister, conceived during his mother’s affair with King Farouk.

Mothers. We wouldn’t be here without them. (Yet.) There is probably no more complex relationship than that of a mother and her children. Some people claim their mother to be their best friends, others haven’t talked to their mothers in years. Some mothers left too soon, while others are way too meddlesome. Whether a mother is a saint, a monster, or something in between, here are 100 great books about complicated mothers, both real and imaginary. (Okay, it’s 99 books and one short story, because Flannery is too good to miss.)

1. You Will Know Me by Megan Abbott
2. Afterbirth by Elisa Albert
3. Bastard Out of Carolina by Dorothy Allison
4. Flowers in the Attic by V.C. Andrews
5. Mom & Me & Mom by Maya Angelou
6. The Middlesteins by Jami Attenberg
7. The Seventh Book of Wonders by Julianna Baggott
8. The Incarnations by Susan Barker
9. Are You My Mother? A Memoir by Alison Bechdel
10. The Mothers by Brit Bennett
11. Psycho by Robert Bloch