This text draws on the editors' and contributors' specialist interests in social work, counselling and gerontology, specifically on research being undertaken on various aspects of the lives of adult women, from mid-life to old age. The volume is primarily concerned with the transitions on the lives of adult women and is constructed around a series of key themes: identity, myths and reality; and managing change. The book illustrates the similarities and diversities which arise in women's lives in relation to ethnicity and race, class, disability and sexual orientation. In doing so, it challenges the more traditional views of women's lives and offers alternative interpretations of key experiences within the life course.