A Life of Her Own by Ellen Feldman, the international bestselling author of Paris Never Leaves You, tells a riveting tale of ethics, self-determination and love in a realistic historical setting.
New York City, 1945 – The war is over, the men are coming home and life can go back to normal for young Fanny Fabricant. When she loses her rosy future in a single instant, however, she is forced to reinvent her life and raise her daughter alone by sheer will and courage.
Brought up to be a ‘nice girl’, to never step out of bounds, and educated for a career as a wife and mother, Fanny quickly learns that the real world isn’t so straightforward.
When she gets a job working for the queen of radio dramas, she finally has a sense of control over her destiny – until two very different men enter her life, giving Fanny an impossible choice. Will she play it safe, or do what she knows is right?
“A Life of Her Own” is a beautifully written tribute to the emancipation of the ‘average’ American woman during and after WWII.
During the war, with many of the male population overseas fighting for freedom, women finally came into their own. Opportunities opened up for them as never before, and those who had been denied top jobs in the workplace suddenly found themselves (almost) equal to their male counterparts!
They could, at last, choose a career over marriage and the bearing of children. Alternatively, it was possible to have both if they so desired. These women paved the way for women’s freedom worldwide, but when the war ended and the men returned, they had to fight to retain it!
Fanny’s story has been scripted with love and humour, and is a wonderful must-read for 2024!
ISBN: 9781761268571
A Life of Her Own is available in paperback, e-book and audiobook.
About Ellen Feldman
Ellen Feldman, a 2009 Guggenheim fellow, is an American author, and has written novels including The Boy Who Loved Anne Frank, Scottsboro (shortlisted for the Orange Prize), Paris Never Leaves You, and Return to Berlin. Her work has been translated into thirteen languages. Ellen grew up in northern New Jersey, USA, and holds a BA and MA in modern history. After further graduate studies at Columbia University, she worked for a New York publishing house.
Ellen lives in New York City with her husband and a terrier named Charlie.