How can a continent produce the first female prime minister in the world but still tolerate the child prostitution of Bangkok and Manila? How can women in countries where their role is perceived by westerners as second-class citizens rise to the top of industrial conglomerates? This work seeks to unravel these mysteries through the lives of women in all walks of Asian life. It is not a tale of the submissive oriental beauties of western fiction, but the true stories of prime ministers, factory labourers, business magnates, mistresses and prostitutes.