Circling My Mother by Mary Gordon

This was actually a discussion in two different book groups and many of the readers in both groups thought she was cruel to her mother. I think it was more the love/hate thing that was probably necessary for the powerful connection they had. The horrible parts of her mother's life made her strong and I think Gordon sees that the difficulties she experienced because of her mother also made her the strong person she became. Many of us fear growing up to be our mothers at the same time we admire them. I liked the way Gordon tried to understand her mother by putting her in the context of all the forces that affected her life.