Mother's Day Blogs 2010

Inga Wiehl was an immigrant from Denmark who learned to read English along with her young daughter Lis, whose early love of mysteries helped pave the way for a successful career in law. Did you read to your daughter as a child? What did you read?

Did you read to your daughter as a child? What did you read?

Moms are great. They carry you around in their bellies for months, give painful birth to you, and then (hopefully) spend years caring for, worrying over and nurturing you until you're (hopefully) able to do all that life stuff for yourself.

My mother, Harriett Dallas, was the literary equivalent of a stage mother. She dragged her friends to my signings, pulled my books from bookstore shelves and placed them face out for better visibility, and she often interrupted my conversations with others on politics or business or whatever to ask, “Sandra, what’s your next book about?” She was my most loyal fan. 

Pity the poor woman who tried to deny me a library card because I was only 4-years- old. “But she can read,” my mother insisted, making it clear that she would stand there until that magic license to borrow books was mine. Saving face, the librarian made up a new rule: If I could write my name, I could have a card. Mamma had won, as she always did, and I could now officially enter the sacred world of readers.

Janet Evanovich is one of the most successful and prolific authors today, writing at least two books a year. When approached to do a graphic novel adaptation of her popular Barnaby and Hooker series, she wasn’t sure how it would come together. That’s when daughter Alex stepped in, taking the lead on their forthcoming project, TROUBLEMAKER. Below, from left, Alex, Barnaby(the dog, not the character) and Janet picking apples in New Hampshire.

Growing up, Emily Giffin was always surrounded by books courtesy of her librarian mother. It wasn’t long before she wasn’t just reading, but writing, illustrating, binding and even acting out her own stories. Years later, Emily is now a bestselling author and mom is one of her earliest readers and sounding boards.

Jane Isay had a long, successful career as a book editor before becoming an author in her own right. Her son, Dave, took the opposite path, beginning as an author before founding StoryCorps and overseeing several anthologies. Click here for a wonderful tribute video courtesy of StoryCorps.

Patty Dugoni doesn’t remember too many specific reading moments with her son, legal thriller writer Robert Dugoni, but as the mother of 10, who can blame her? She does fondly recall family trips to the library (admittedly as much for her benefit as her children’s) and her budding novelist whipping through the classics in his early years.

P.C. and Kristin Cast are the mother/daughter author duo behind the bestselling House of Night Young Adult series. Here they share both some humorous and serious aspects of writing together as mother and daughter. What made you decide to write together? P.C.: We write together? What? Who is this Kristin person of whom you speak?