Family Ties aims to provide a vivid and accessible introduction to the dynamics of life in English families of all ranks, from the mid-16th century to the end of World War I. Sections on methods, approaches and sources allow readers who are new to the study of the past to explore some of the historian's fundamental concerns: cause and effect; continuity and change; and the nature and reliability of evidence. The chronological and thematic organization of the book is designed to enable readers to examine a number of sub-themes, such as the history of childhood or of marriage. Combining...

The decades between the close of World War I and the end of the Thatcher era have changed and challenged family life in England dramatically. The Depression and World War II shifted priorities and behaviour, as did the Welfare State, the Pill and Women's Lib later on. What threatened a family's respectability in the 1920s is often commonplace today - abortion, contraception, the single parent family, or gay relationships. Family Affairs explores the secret life of English families from 1920 to 1990. Mary Abbott takes the reader into her subjects' homes and hearts and provokes readers to...

The decades between the close of World War I and the end of the Thatcher era have changed and challenged family life in England dramatically. The Depression and World War II shifted priorities and behaviour, as did the Welfare State, the Pill and Women's Lib later on. What threatened a family's respectability in the 1920s is often commonplace today - abortion, contraception, the single parent family, or gay relationships. Family Affairs explores the secret life of English families from 1920 to 1990. Mary Abbott takes the reader into her subjects' homes and hearts and provokes readers to...