Mothers and Lovers by Elizabeth Wood

The story of Morgan Ross, head girl, hockey star, bush nurse, rebel, actress, feminist, wife, mother and lesbian. From her childhood in Adelaide, Morgan is continually urged to contain her ambitions and dreams. For a long time she manages a degree of conformity, especially when Annie, her first lover, decides that living as a lesbian is not for her and reverts back to being Morgan’s closest friend. More successful as a mother than as a wife, Morgan finally realises she must reject this role and insist on the validity of all the other roles in her life, including being a lesbian. This ultimately results in a tense court-room custody case where the details of her life are exposed and often misrepresented by people who feel her lesbianism makes her an unfit mother. She does get support from some: Annie, the headmistress, and her children. The book is sometimes tense, often humourous and deeply moving, and gives a well-rounded picture of a woman struggling to maintain her integrity.