Books about, or featuring, difficult mothers (and their put-upon daughters)?!

Hi word nerds! I am obsessed with you all following my discovery of this community and my first post here yesterday (asking for best ever lit fic), which garnered an amazing response – thank you! I’m hoping I can pick your substantial brains for a more difficult topic…

**Difficult mothers.**

Specifically:

* **Books** ***about*** **difficult mothers (nonfiction):** But no BS self-help 101, or indeed Psych 101, as the audiences I have in mind (see below) are, variously:
* a practising therapist;
* a psychotherapist-in-training; and
* someone widely read in psychotherapy, psychiatry and psychology, who has been in therapy herself for 30+ years
* **Books** ***featuring*** **a difficult mother as a main character:** Literary fiction of the very best “unbearable literary snob” standards again, please – but also a really good read (I know, I know: I don’t ask for much, do I?!). One that comes to mind is *Olive Kitteridge* by Elizabeth Strout, if that helps.

Bonus points for books that include how **daughters** can/do – or, indeed, cannot or do not! – deal with their difficult mothers.

I have a few distinct audiences in mind for these books, which will be relevant for any recs:

1. **Myself:** Currently dealing with a difficult mother – see (2) below) – and honestly at a loss for how to deal with her. I am essentially her therapist, and it’s starting to feel a bit draining, quite frankly!
2. **My mother:** Undiagnosed MH issues (certainly depression, possible borderline PD); wants to be closer to her kids and grandkids, but makes this nigh-on impossible due to her blaming, guilt-tripping, andundealt-with childhood trauma (brother with genuine narcissistic PD, childhood abuse, terrible parents); cannot understand another person’s POV; but also deeply sensitive, loving, would do anything for anyone, etc. A “complex character”, if you will!
3. **My partner:** A survivor of significant trauma: childhood sexual abuse, children’s homes, foster “care”, and a mother – still living, still wreaking havoc – with Munchausen’s By Proxy.

Phew, that was a lot, sorry! Will also take this to therapy lol.

Thanks babes! Any book recs gratefully received!

xox

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by DigitalAnalogue84