Generations of Motherhood

This raw and real memoir features a deeply authentic woman who moved through extraordinary challenges to become the woman she always believed she could be and lead a successful and joyful life. Lilly A. Gwilliam courageously bares it all to show you how to move past your family traumas and learn to truly believe in yourself.

If you have a dream or desire that you are struggling to achieve, you will be inspired to face your fears and move past the obstacles in your path. If you have a challenging mother-daughter relationship, you'll find out how to break the cycle of dysfunction. If you feel trapped in a relationship you are not happy in, you will discover freedom and a way out. And, if you have ever questioned your value and worth, you will learn how to find power and strength through forgiveness.

Back in the 1950s, when all families were supposed to be like "Leave it to Beaver" with a cheerful stay-at-home mother, there were few children who admitted to something different. Lilly, the author, examines her childhood and her relationship to her mother and admits that they came up lacking. Those patterns, while regretted, are often inadvertently repeated.

Lilly, however, was determined to create a different model for her children. Here she tells the story of examining her past and committing to be a supportive mother while simultaneously managing to meet her children's financial needs and pursue her educational goals. It was a bumpy road---her story is that of many women of this era when professional goals were often not encouraged and day care was unavailable. If you are a child of the 50s, you will recognize a lot of yourself in this story. If you are younger, you will learn about and appreciate the struggle of a previous generation of women.
Lynn Thomson Scott, Ph.D.

This is an absorbing memoir written by a strong, intelligent woman, who in spite of potentially soul-crushing lack of emotional and financial support, achieved a career dream she had from an early age.

Readers will relate to Lilly Gwilliam's quest to become the person she was meant to be. Instead of accepting setbacks, and repeating generational mistakes, she looked for and found solutions on her path to success as a mother, nurse, and in the legal field.
Elisabeth Tuck, past president of The California Writers Club-Mt. Diablo Branch