Summary

The experiences of women from all race groups, classes, and political persuasions are brought to life in this compelling collection of extracts. Living in close proximity, but often in vastly different realities, South African women were, in many ways, 'the closest of strangers' to each other, and their relationships were marked by both intimacy and alienation. The selection draws on a large number of autobiographical texts by both ordinary and extraordinary women such as Sarah Raal, Emily Hobhouse, Pauline Smith, Phyllis Ntantala, Dr Goonam, Katie Makanya, Pauline Podbrey, Norma Kitson, Bertha Solomon, Winnie Madikizela-Mandela, Helen Joseph, Ruth First, Helen Suzman, Bessie Head, Mamphela Ramphele, Selestina Ngubane, Emma Mashinini, Marike de Klerk, Antjie Krog, Charlene Smith, and Maria Ndlovu. Together, these texts demonstrate the courage and strength of spirit with which South African women responded to personal and political circumstances in the twentieth century.