For the first time, a generation of women are growing up for whom sex discrimination has always been illegal, who have always had access to effective contraception and who have entered the workforce with the knowledge that they can hold the same job as any man. It's not surprising then that it would seem women have never had it so good.

On the surface, feminism has achieved a revolution for women. But often the choices young women seem to make freely are in fact compromises that can cause conflict and imbalance.

For instance, young women today may want their partner to share equally in raising a child, but still expect to shoulder most of the responsibility. Women want to be paid equally with men but often choose to work in areas that are not well paid. Many women start out thinking they can have a career and a family but often discover too late that they have exlcuded one of those choices from their life.

Women on Work, Love, Children & Life is a fascinating study about the many choices facing women today, in which award-winning writer Peggy Orenstein explores modern women's struggle to reconcile their inherited expectations with their modern goals. Published by Judy Piatkus, it costs £10.99.

GIVEAWAY

We've got a copy of Women on Work, Love, Children & Life to give away. Just send a

postcard with your name and address to: On the Bookshelf/Peggy Orenstein, WOMAN, Southern Daily Echo, Test Lane, Redbridge, Southampton, SO16 9JX.