Fantastic book. Lovely writing, a story well told. ( )

A gentle biography - Kate does a good job of writing from her mother's point of view based on fragments of writing and family stories. ( )

kate Grenville's biography of her mother's life up to the point at which Grenville herself was born. A fascinating social history of Sydney and NSW in the first half of the 20th century, and particularly the challenges faced by women who wanted or needed to be independent. For my full review, please see: http://whisperinggums.com/2015/09/09/kate-grenville-one-life-my-mothers-story-re... ( )

4.5 stars. A lovely biography of the author's mother, telling the story of an amazing woman who lived a remarkable but unheralded life. Grenville is, as always, fluent and easy to read - a writer who doesn't need showy sentences to demonstrate her gifts. The story is told with love and honesty and, alongside its obvious topic, unpacks the dreadful challenges put in front of women throughout the twentieth century. ( )

Kate Grenville is one of my favourite writers and this book was such a delightful read. As soon as I finished it I wanted to go back and start at the beginning again and read it over. The story of her wonderful mother is so lovingly told. After experiencing her own "unloved and unwanted childhood" she was determined to give her children all the love she had missed, giving up her career to do so....and she succeeded. My own mother's story covered almost the same lifespan (1908-1998) and there were many parallels ... She always told us about her time at high school and about how she wanted to go to university but was told it was not possible for a girl and that the only career she could have was as a nurse or primary school teacher. She wanted to go into politics and that was a definite "no no". She also knew that she had to choose between being a mother and having a career. Luckily for me me and my siblings she chose a career as a Mother and like Kate Grenviilles's mother Nance she succeeded. I wish I had the talent to write her story as KG did. ( )