Everyone has heroes. Some are far removed from ordinary life. Others are closer to home. In her latest book, Mothers & Other Heroes, Cincinnati Enquirer columnist, Laura Pulfer, inspires us with her heroes, many of whom have greatly enriched, even helped to shape, the lives of others. She didn't have to venture far to find the one who influenced her most.
"My heroes are funny and moving and brave. Sometimes they talked to me when they were in incredible pain. Sometimes they shamed me with their goodness. Sometimes they made me laugh," expounded Ms. Pulfer. "But my mother is my foremost hero. She is the reason I became more of the person she encouraged me to be."
The book is a collection of Ms. Pulfer's most heartening columns. Each one serves as a reminder to readers that there are still plenty of role models for us to follow—the nurse who regularly allows her patients to break her heart; the young lawyer who wouldn't give up until he sprung an innocent man.
"Some of the people here are famous—Julia Child, Nikki Giovanni, Barry Larkin—but most are not," explains Ms. Pulfer. "Most are simply people who have shown extraordinary grace or courage. Some have brilliant ideas. Or the rarest of all commodities—common sense."