A Mother's Tears: Mothers Remember Their Sons Lost in Iraq

A Mother’s Tears documents the memories that 17 mothers and 2 grandmothers have of their sons/grandsons who were killed in the war in Iraq. The 19 stories are each introduced by the author, preceded by a brief biographical summary of each boy. The stories are told in the mothers’ own voices, accompanied by photo-album pictures of the boys. The mothers come from all parts of the country, with about an equal number supporting and opposing the war. Some supported the war at first, then began to have second thoughts. Most of the boys were 21 years old or younger at the time of their deaths. None of the boys in the book was older than 27. Although they weren’t technically "boys" since all were over 18, in their mothers’ hearts they will always be boys, as the mothers’ memories so touchingly reveal. One of the mothers in the book, Lila Lipscomb, will be familiar to anyone who has seen the Michael Moore film, "Fahrenheit 9/11." Her memories of her son, Michael Pedersen! , are full of love and pain. Amid all the happy stories of their son’s babyhood and young boyhood, each mother tells of her grief and sense of loss, something all these mothers — and the hundreds of other mothers who have lost sons in Iraq — live with every day. As Rosa Gonzalez, mother of Jorge, said, "On Mother’s Day, you need to hear your son say, ‘Happy Mother’s Day.’ Now he’s gone, and all that’s left are mother’s tears."