Can Any Mother Help Me?, by Jenna Bailey

This is a wonderful, comforting read, telling the story of a group of women, all mothers, who started a support network in the 1930s to help each other through the trials and tribulations of being housewives and mothers. It all started because of one mother's feeling of isolation, and it seems like this was a 1930s version of mumsnet! All the women share their life stories with each other, some funny, some sad, often very moving, and this book collects some of their letters of a 50 year period. For me, the appeal was how intelligent, articulate women coped with the sometimes frustrating and isolating experiences of being a mother and a woman, things that we don't like to admit we feel. A really lovely book - highly recommended.