Motherhood and Motherloss

Bieker suggests the importance of love from a mother through Lacey’s yearning for Louise. Lacey’s longing to be close to Louise and have her love pushes her forward the entire novel. Lacey feels the acute pain of motherloss, which Bieker imagines as a disease. Bieker, who had her own mother abandon her at a young age, writes from her own experiences of a girl feeling untethered without her mother. While Lacey longs for Louise, she also accepts maternal love from the other characters in the novel, like Cherry, when she shows it, and Daisy who is a consistent source of comfort for Lacey. Bieker suggests than that motherhood and motherloss is not inherently tied to biological mothers, but rather any woman who can offer unconditional support and acceptance.

While focusing on the importance of motherhood, Bieker also depicts negative portrayals of mothers...