Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #30884 in Books
• Published on: 2008-01-31
• Original language: English
• Binding: Paperback
• 352 pages

Review
"'An engaging and informative book, often touching, occasionally hilarious, sometimes profoundly moving.' Independent"

Telegraph
'Beautifully written and emotionally engaging. Bailey's selection
and organisation of the material is very good indeed.'

Observer
`Fantastically absorbing, frequently funny ... gives us a
remarkable opportunity to indulge in that most human of pleasures,
eavesdropping.'

Customer Reviews

Brilliant stories
This is a wonderful book - I picked it up based on a recommendation and wasn't sure if I was going to be all that interested, but it is absolutely captivating. The stories of these women are remarkable, and the tale of their friendship, held together mainly by letters over half a century, is extraordinary. It's very well edited, too, as the letters have been carefully chosen and little background biographies are provided for all the women.

The Secret Life of the Housewife.
This is an insight into the isolation of women at home with children particularly between the wars when married women were not allowed to work outside the home and some could not even afford a radio for company. No mod cons but mindless housework left thoughtful women in need of intelligent company which they found through their correspondence club. From young mothers to widowhood and their eventual deaths this a moving selction of their writing. Incidentally my mother in law was one of the original members.

A Wonderful Book
This is a wonderful book. As it traces the lives of these so articulate ladies from the mid 1930's and beyond it is an invaluable social history. These letters so beautifully written are funny, poignant, illuminating and finally so sad as the trials of life and finally old age are endured. The author is to be complemented on her sensitive organisation of the material.