Essere madre
By: Anna Paolini
Publisher: Logos Edizioni, Italia, 2024
Format: Hardcover
The essence of motherhood
"To be a mother" is the translation of the Italian title of this book. One of the affordances of silent books is that they let us explore feelings that are hard to find words for, feelings that are too deep or complicated to be diminished into a rhyme or a clever sentence. "Essere madre" is this kind of silent book. For me, it portrays all the complicated feelings of motherhood: Love, despair, longing, hope, loss, sorrow, joy. To be a mother is to hope, to take care and hold on, but at the right time being able to let go, although you never truly do, the children are always with you.
At the beginning of the book, Paolini dedicates this book to all mothers. She then uses the hair of the mother to lead the reader throught the pages, connecting the mother to the nature,making room for a nest, taking care of the egg and embracing the bird. Intertwined with the hair are vines and leaves, there are bugs and wind and feathers and heart: The mother is deeply connected to the cycle of life.
The book is gorgeous, but when reading, I found myself wishing it was a leporello - the fluidity of the story would translate so beautiful to that format. The feeling of movement is still there through the book though, and Paolini´s illustrations are works of art, very delicate and expressive. Every picture is a full spread, which suits the story perfectly. The large illustrations make you spend time studying them, there are so many little details to be discovered, and the book feels like a poem.
When reading this book with children, I have discovered that they keep stroking the woman´s hair, showing care and empathy. They instantly read her as a mother, even though there are no babies in this book and I don´t tell children the title of silent books before reading.
"Essere madre" is a celebration of the strength of all mothers out there, connected as we are to nature, our children and each other. The symbolism is both modern and ancient at the same time, connecting motherhood to nature and history. A beautiful gift for all the mothers out there!
