Toler credits her mother's "rules" for life - a life that saw her grow up the daughter of a poor teen mother and endure a husband who suffered mental illness and alcoholism - with providing the grounding for her own success and happiness. Toler shows how the mindset of "a black woman who knew how to make things work" taught her the power of knowing how to manage one's emotional business--lessons that this book offers in wrenching stories written in spare and graceful prose.

My Mother's Rules is an unforgettable book that will captivate readers with its illustrations of how to rise above the most difficult circumstances and find peace and success in life.