Nadezhda "Nadiya" Borodinskaya, an ethnic Russian from Ukraine is not a definition of a successful and well-made immigrant. She works as a part-time nanny for a spoiled and pampered young charge named Sasha and her Russian-American mother Regina, and as a senior citizen home attendant to Russian speaking men and women. In addition to those tasks, Nadiya is also forced to worry about her diabetic and trapped daughter Larissa back in war-torn Ukraine.

Nadiya has made a promise to Larissa to get her out of Ukraine, but almost six years have passed since she left her daughter. Can Nadiya keep her promise to Larissa, or will she have to take more drastic measures?

In reading MOTHER COUNTRY by Irina Reyn, I feel as if she penned a tale of disconnect between first- generation mothers and their children because I saw a lot of my own mother in Nadiya's behavior, as well as her views on child-rearing and living. MOTHER COUNTRY is a subtle tale that both teaches and informs multiple generations of women from old and new countries about one another, and it ultimately teaches of the power that the word "mother" has over children.

Prior to reading MOTHER COUNTRY, I often defined a mother as someone nurturing and who helps a child or children grow to their full potential. However, from thinking of why the word mother is used in the title, I realize "mother" has another meaning: that of stacking and building a child's character to get them to live full lives, and an essence that becomes entangled within the heart and the very bones of the child. A triumphant and human tale of the daily life of immigrants that are not rich, MOTHER COUNTRY by Irina Reyn should be read by all women who share immigrant experience in order to build lost bridges to understanding one another.

Book Summary

Award-winning author Irina Reyn explores what it means to be a mother in a world where you can't be with your child

Nadia's daily life in south Brooklyn is filled with small indignities: as a senior home attendant, she is always in danger of being fired; as a part-time nanny, she is forced to navigate the demands of her spoiled charge and the preschooler's insecure mother; and as a ethnic Russian, she finds herself feuding with western Ukrainian immigrants who think she is a traitor.

The war back home is always at the forefront of her reality. On television, Vladimir Putin speaks of the "reunification" of Crimea and Russia, the Ukrainian president makes unconvincing promises about a united Ukraine, while American politicians are divided over the fear of immigration. Nadia internalizes notions of "union" all around her, but the one reunion she has been waiting six years for - with her beloved daughter - is being eternally delayed by the Department of Homeland Security. When Nadia finds out that her daughter has lost access to the medicine she needs to survive, she takes matters into her own hands.

Mother Country is Irina Reyn's most emotionally complex, urgent novel yet. Hopeful and full of humor, it is a story of mothers and daughters and, above all else, resilience.