An overflow crowd of 140 people spilled out of the Saxe Room of the Worcester Public library on December 1 to hear readings from the new book, In Her Shoes: A Compilation of Inspiring Stories from the First Decade of the Worcester Women’s Oral History Project. Co-authors and Co-Chairpersons of the Project, Charlene L. Martin and Maureen Ryan Doyle, read three selections from each of the book’s chapters, answered questions from the audience, and signed books for those in attendance.
In Her Shoes contains the stories of women from different generations, ethnicities, religions and socioeconomic backgrounds who participated in the first decade of the Worcester Women’s Oral History Project. The book focuses on the universal themes of striving for work-life balance, commitment to a personal cause, and finding one’s own path in life despite obstacles big and small. It is the belief of WWOHP that is through the sharing of women’s stories that we come to appreciate, that despite our differences, often there are common threads that unite all women. Whether reading about the life of a young baker, an actress, a mother, an entrepreneur, or a funeral director, we come to respect each woman’s experiences and the choices she has made. And, perhaps, we achieve a better understanding of life in her shoes.
Co-authors Charlene L. Martin and Maureen Ryan Doyle are available for appearances and interviews and may be contacted at chmartin@townisp.com and Mryandoyle@aol.com. You may also visit http://voicesofworcesterwomen.blogspot.com . For information on how to purchase In Her Shoes or their first book, Voices of Worcester Women: 160 Years after the First Woman’s Rights Convention published in 2011, please go to http://www.wwhp.org/support-wwhp .
