Book choice - Women in the professions: politics and philanthropy, 1840-1940

By Katherine Bradley and Helen Sweet • Trafford Publishing. Price: £11 .36 • ISBN 1-4269-1187

Dr Helen Sweet from the Wellcome Unit at Oxford University and Lesley Wade from Manchester University - both members of the RCN History of Nursing Society - have contributed to this groundbreaking text on the historical analysis of gender and class issues.

With its particular focus on women and women's groups that have influenced 19th and 20th century politics, the book brings together many forgotten women in all spheres of life who, during the years between the 1840s and the 1940s, challenged the status quo and opened up many areas for generations of women.

The interplay of many of these significant but previously neglected groups helps to throw light on the development and diversity of nursing. In particular the text helps to confirm that far from operating in repressive silos, nursing dipped its toes into the rich tapestry of social, political and cultural change.