My Mother's Daughter
A Memoir of Struggle and Triumph
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4.3 • 11 Ratings
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- $11.99
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- $11.99
Publisher Description
NATIONAL BESTSELLER
"A phenomenal, human story. . . . I could not put this book down." —CLARA HUGHES
An instant national bestseller, this raw and affecting memoir is the story of a mother and daughter who beat the odds together.
Decades before Perdita Felicien became a World Champion hurdler running the biggest race of her life at the 2004 Olympics, she carried more than a nation's hopes—she carried her mother Catherine's dreams.
In 1974, Catherine is determined and tenacious, but she's also pregnant with her second child and just scraping by in St. Lucia. When she meets a wealthy white Canadian family vacationing on the island, she knows it's her chance. They ask her to come to Canada to be their nanny—and she accepts.
This was the beginning of Catherine's new life: a life of opportunity, but also suffering. Within a few years, she would find herself pregnant a third time—this time in her new country with no family to support her, and this time, with Perdita. Together, in the years to come, mother and daughter would experience racism, domestic abuse, and even homelessness, but Catherine's will would always pull them through.
As Perdita grew and began to discover her preternatural athletic gifts, she was edged onward by her mother's love, grit, and faith. Facing literal and figurative hurdles, she learned to leap and pick herself back up when she stumbled. This book is a daughter's memoir—a book about the power of a parent's love to transform their child's life.
Customer Reviews
Wonderful journey of a Canadian immigrant!
What a wonderful memoir that pays homage to her mother. In this book, Perditia is honest about her St-Lucian roots and her mother’s journey as a nanny into Canada. You feel for her mom’s multiple struggles to provide a life of opportunity by any means necessary for her children. You get to understand the family struggles In Perditia’s childhood and her drive for success as a professional athlete. She is much more than the 100 meters hurdles fall in the 2004 Athens Olympic. In my opinion winning is important but failure is a better teacher. From her experience we learn that the journey of an athlete is much more defined by a single moment in time. We all have hurdles in our lives like Perditia in the track in field championships.The ability to build yourself and get backup once you fall is what makes a true champion. A great book to read! Also a great immigrant story of a Canadian trademark.