Customer Reviews

In Our Mothers' House

5 star:		(6)
4 star:		(3)
3 star:		(0)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(1)

 

 

The book is wonderful and my absolute favorite among my children's books. Our kids read it often and will always comment on certain aspects that relate to their own stories.
the book touches on many topics: the unconditional love of two mothers for their children, lesbian parenting, adoption, transracial families, homophobia, true family values, loss, and the comfort we find in the traditions that we create.
I have read it so many times - and still my eyes tear up at the end.

Marmee and Meema and their three children fill their lives with the of joy of new puppies, holiday meals and homemade Halloween costumes. They cook together, laugh together, dance together. Their lives are like any other family in their town. And while one of their neighbors doesn't accept them because they are different, Marmee and Meema handle it with gentleness and grace, focusing instead on the support they feel from the rest of their neighborhood.

Patricia Polacco has created a portrait of a loving family here, celebrating their differences while showing the love that all of the family members feel for each other. This certainly can help children see that families with two moms, two dads or adopted children are families full of love; but this book also simply reminds children of the love and safety they feel within their own home.

Patricia Polacco's IN OUR MOTHER'S HOUSE tells of Marmee, Meema and the kids who are like any other family - except they have two moms and no dad. One family on their block won't accept them - but their house is filled with love and gentle teachings in this wonderful story of a different family. An exceptional acquisition, highly recommended.

I am a grad student in a Reading Specialist program and bought this book after discussing it in one of my classes. I am a huge fan of Patricia Polacco's and this book is no exception. It is a heartwarming tale of a multi-ethnic family and their two mothers. It discusses their everyday life and the love and happiness in their family. There is also 1 family down the block that introduces tension to the story - with their vocal disapproval of the relationship between the two mothers.

Overall, a great book that I really enjoyed reading.

A few disappointing things - the illustrations of the two mothers are very much the stereotypical portrayal of lesbian women, short hair, pants (there is a specific point in the book of how they never wear dresses), etc. Also, at the end of the book, the 3 children go off and start jobs and find their own relationships. The jobs selected for each child stick to the traditional gender roles (which is disappointing since this is a book that is advocating for acceptance of this family structure)

Patricia Polacco again topped herself with this sensitive story about a same sex couple adopting children. I purchased it for a school library but the topic is controversial for an elementary school, so will donate it elsewhere.

What a wonderful story for our time! With Marriage for Gay and Lesbian couples being threatened in Maine and challenged all over the country, stories like this one are needed more than ever. Patricia Polacco's story reminds it's readers that all families should be celebrated.

Although this is a sensitive situation to expose young children to, I love the story and Patricia Polacco is my very favorite children's author. I have all her books!

Great book for all children and adults. Patricia Polacco always has a great story with wonderful illustrations.

Remember that in the English Language an apostrophe after the s is plural not possessive. I bought this book by Polacco for my Mother for Mother's Day. I obviously did not read about it at all. I looked at the title and knew that I loved Polacco so I bought it. It was not the book I needed for my own traditional mother. However, it is a very tastefully written book about growing up with two mothers. It does not in any way go into details of living arrangements or anything like that. It is a book about children that had two loving mothers and how they grew up.

I work in an elementary school library in a very small town, having moved here from a very large city. Today, this book arrived in our school. I was immediately angered at the title and the cover art (morally, I am opposed to same sex marriages...although we do have several gay friends who understand and accept our beliefs, just as we do theirs). I set the book aside so I could cool off as I wanted to read it with an open mind. By way of explanation of the following, this book is labeled for grades 1-4, ages 4-8. I am the mother of a 6 and a 4 year old.
After reading the book, I can say it is an interesting story. Perhaps these situarions are commonplace in other areas of the country, but not as commonplace as the media and others would have us believe. The book is perhaps painting the picture of the "ideal" lesbian relationship, with nothing but love abounding, which is fine as most children's books are ideals. However, the author cannot resist bringing in the stereotypical family who won't accept this couple because of "what they are". This tension is stressed throughout the book. This is also a common situation, but perhaps not as common as the media and others would have us believe. Furthermore, it is a complicated situarion for many people (like ourselves) who have to struggle with our faith and God's word. (We believe same sex relations are wrong but God teaches us to love our neighbor. We take this to mean that we cannot and do not condone same sex partnerships, but we accept others and the fact that they have different beliefs, and we do not shun others simply because they are different. We embrace all people as God has taught us...and we teach our children to do the same).
All of that being said, and yes, I do believe it is necessary to state our beliefs as I know I will be attacked by many as being hateful...I think the story is well written with obvious love and care for the two mothers. However, this is NOT appropriate material for children aged 4-8 as the topic is too difficult for children to understand and the book depicts the women touching each other affectionately. I don't want to have to explain to my children at an age where they cannot understand why these women are raising children together. They are too young to grasp the concept of marriage or love or commitment at this age. They are still trying to define their own emotions. Save these topics for an age where the children can at least put a name on what they're feeling.
If you are buying this for home use, buy away. It's an interesting read. Note well that some topics in the book are for more mature children, though. I would steer away from this book if you want to share it with other families or children unless you know them very well and they understand and accept your beliefs...and they're mature enough to understand it.