Firstly, I wish to thank you to the authoress for her honesty in telling (some parts, I presume, as I suppose there are still some matters private) her story with her abusive mother precisely as a means to show that she very well knows what is to suffer such a pain caused by mother, who should bring only love their child/children. I think this must be very hard for her to bring much very personal issues into the light, and I see that she did it out of kindness and sincere wishes to help the others. Thank you deeply.

This guide and novena aim to reach to the heart suffering from the abuse of their mother and to guide them to healing (including forgiveness) with the mighty help of another mother figure - Mary, the Mother of God. She gently leads her readers, while fully acknowledging their pain, to shift their attention and their heart unto Mary's loving, ever-willing-to-help presence.
I find this little book both impressive (for the gift of authoress's honesty and for the gentle, yet very well working shift to Mary's motherly love) and simple (in the good meaning). This is not a tractate (even if I love these and I would love for this book to go deeper into both the theology and psychology), because the authoress does not aim to that. I think that she wishes to show her readers another, more meaningful perspective - and she does that while gently embracing her readers in spirit, with prayer. This is a little, simple book - yet it might become a big gift on your journeying towards healing.

I really wanted to love this book - the subject matter was compelling and as a devoted Catholic, I am always looking for ways to strengthen my faith and grow as a devoted daughter of Mary. This book, however, was a bit different than I anticipated. It is really targeted toward women who struggle with their relationships with their own mothers. I have a wonderful relationship with my mother and didn't feel that I could relate to the book. While it would be a great fit for the right person, this book is most beneficial to women who can see Mary as a surrogate for their own mother and find healing and hope in Christ's mother where their own mother may have failed.

A beautifully written book of novenas and devotion to our mother, Mary.

Born of a mother-daughter relationship that goes way beyond “it’s complicated,” Marge Steinhage Fenelon’s Forgiving Mother: A Marian Novena of Healing and Peace (new from Servant Books) speaks to the heart of those who carry the burden of wounds from the past.

Sometimes "healing" is physical, sometimes spiritual, sometimes both. And often the sources of our hurt are deep in our past. In this moving, autobiographical, and deeply moving book Fenelon uses her own path to healing through the Virgin to show us how she can heal us and become our mother.

Each chapter begins with the author telling us her own story and how the Virgin helped her. She then expands these ideas to look more generally at the role of Mary and Christ in our lives.

It concludes with a novena to Mary that can be prayed by itself or in conjunction with reading the book.

This was exactly the right time to come upon this book. The scripture, the personal story and the novena all combine to make a beautiful narrative of healing that is available to all of us who need it.
The use of mindfulness combined with a focus on God is a great way to transcend your bad memories and overcome them – and something I’d like to put into practice.