The Mother's Day holiday, which occurs on the second Sunday in May, was established in Philadelphia in 1908 and declared a national holiday by President Woodrow Wilson in 1914. It is now celebrated in a variety of countries around the world. Mother's Day is an opportunity to express appreciation, and also a time for reflection on the meaning of motherhood and the special challenges facing some modern mothers.

The following books and articles are completely free to read in their entirety from May 10, 2002, through May 17, 2002, with a free trial account.

What Makes a Mother?
  The Birth of a Mother: How the Motherhood Experience Changes You Forever
       by Daniel N. Stern, Nadia Bruschweiler-Stern, & Alison Freeland
  Our Mothers, Our Selves: Writers and Poets Celebrating Motherhood
       edited by Karen J. Donnelly & J.B. Bernstein
  Mothers of Sons: Toward an Understanding of Responsibility
       by Linda Rennie Forcey

Challenges of Modern Motherhood
  When Mothers Work: Loving Our Children Without Sacrificing Our Selves
       by Joan K. Peters
  Surrogate Motherhood: Conception in the Heart
       by Helena Ragoné
  Adolescent Pregnancy and Parenting: Findings from a Racially Diverse Sample
       by Patricia L. East & Marianne E. Felice

Anti-Vietnam War Protest and the 1960s

Stress

Baseball and the Business of Sports

Presidents in Times of War

The Olympics and Sports

National Freedom Day

"I have a dream..."

The Lord of the Rings and J.R.R. Tolkien

It's Cramming Season!

Witchcraft and Harry Potter

Broadcast News

Veterans Day

Religion of the Middle East

Psychological effects of terrorism

Terrorism on Sept. 11,2001

Planet of the Apes

Labor Day

The Berlin Wall