Because you ARE good enough and the right book can get us through just about anything, I have compiled a short list of Toxic Mom Toolkit recommended books. Request them now from your library so you can curl up in a corner this fall and read until your eyes turn to raisins – LIKE MINE.
Many of these titles are available on Kindle for very low prices starting at .99 cents.
Stories heal. Read some.
This list will always be changing and growing. If you have a book that helped you please let me know at Toxic Mom Toolkit on Facebook or at ToxicMomToolkit.com.
Horrible Mothers: Breach of a Sacred Trust by Alice Thie Viera Phd. PLEASE READ THIS BOOK!
Will I Ever Be Good Enough?: Healing the Daughters of Narcissistic Mothers by Karyl McBride
Toxic Parents: Overcoming Their Hurtful Legacy and Reclaiming Your Life by Susan Forward and Craig Buck
Memoir: “House Rules” by Rachel Sontag
Daughter of the Queen of Sheba: A Memoir by Jacki Lyden
When you and Your Mother Can’t Be Friends: Resolving the Most Complicated Relationship of Your Life by Victoria Secunda
Mean Mothers: Overcoming the Legacy of Hurt by Peg Streep
Mama Drama: Making Peace with the One Woman Who Can Push Your Buttons, Make You Cry, and Drive You Crazy by Denise McGregor
Mothers Who Drive Their Daughters Crazy: Ten Types of Impossible Moms and How to Deal with Them by Susan Simon Cohen and Edward M. Cohen
The Mother I Carry: A Memoir of Healing from Emotional Abuse by Louise M. Wisechild
The New Don’t Blame Mother: Mending the Mother-Daughter Relationship by Paula Caplan
Leaving Home: The Art of Separating From Your Difficult Family by David P. Celani
Emotional Blackmail: When the People in Your Life Use Fear, Obligation, and Guilt to Manipulate You by Susan Forward
Secret Daughter: A Mixed Race Daughter and the Mother Who Gave Her Away by June Cross
The Girl Nobody Wants by Lily O’Brien
Climbing the Broken Stairs: A Memoir by Frieda Annette Adkins
The New Orphan: When Parents Abandon their Adult Children by Judith Clyde
Mother, Stranger by Cris Beam
Why Me? By Sarah Burleton
Toxic Mom Toolkit 
I found M. Scott Peck’s Book “People of the Lie” helpful. I use to wonder how my Mother could twist things I said, so that I thought I was the crazy one. The story Dr. Peck told of the parents (He does include Toxic Fathers as well) who gave their son the same gun his brother used to kill himself as a Christmas present was absolutely chilling.
It helped me to understand why I become so angry at being lied to. I am grateful that my Mother died nearly four years ago, but the damage dome to me and my sister, who lived with her has been catastrophic.
Thanks for suggesting this book. We’ll add it to the list moving forward.
I, too, find that so many times in life when something makes me fearful or furious it’s because there is a link back to my toxic mom. Whenever my blood starts boiling I stop and think WHY is this so upsetting and that helps.
The Susan Forward books were revelations for me. Emotional Blackmail was the first thing I read that nailed every single behavior I was dealing with as an adult with a toxic mother. I would recommend adding Understanding the Borderline Mother by Christine Ann Lawson. I remember the first time I began the section about The Queen Mother and starting to highlight pertinent parts – I ended up highlighting entire pages. It was a validating read, to say the least…
Thanks for contributing to the resource list on Toxic Mom Toolkit!