In the Family Way: Illegitimacy Between the Great War and the Swinging Sixties

Unmarried mothers, absent fathers, orphaned children - this is a truly gripping book about guilty secrets, family bonds and unlikely heroes

Only a generation or two ago, illegitimacy was one of the most shameful things that could happen in a family.

In the Family Way tells secrets kept for entire lifetimes- long-silent voices from the workhouse, the Magdalene Laundry or the distant mother-and-baby home. Anonymous childhoods are recalled, spent in the care of Dr Barnardo or a Child Migration scheme halfway across the world.

There are sorrowful stories in this book, but it is also about hope- about supportive families who welcomed ‘love-children’ home, or those who were parted and are now reconciled. Most of all, In the Family Way is about finally telling the truth.