A NEW book built around decades of personal letters is offering a glimpse into life in regional Western Australia through the eyes of a woman who lived and worked across Northam, Onslow and Parkerville during the mid-20th century.

Nancy’s Letters, written by West Australian author and researcher Judy Taylor, is a narrative non-fiction social history based on letters written by her mother, Nancy Withnell Taylor, to a pen pal in New York between 1929 and the 1960s.

Dr Taylor, who grew up in Parkerville, said the collection captured both everyday life and major historical events experienced by West Australians during the period.

The book includes Nancy Taylor’s recollections of working at the Spencer’s Brook Post Office near Northam, travelling alone as a young woman to work in Onslow, and life on pastoral stations in the Pilbara.

It also details her later years establishing a poultry farm in Parkerville, fostering a child and serving as president of the Country Women’s Association.

Dr Taylor said the letters reflected changing social attitudes and regional life across WA during the mid-20th century, while also highlighting perspectives and experiences that were often left undocumented at the time.

“These writings give a story of the social issues of the day but also there are silences about events experienced by other West Australians, notably First Nations people,” she said.

The book also includes letters written home by Nancy Taylor’s brothers while they were prisoners of war during World War II.

Dr Taylor said many men from Northam and the Wheatbelt area shared similar wartime experiences within the same battalion.

Nancy’s Letters was published earlier this year through Leschenault Press and is available online and through the State Library of Western Australia.

The book is listed for $29.95 on Amazon, and $46.57 from Dymocks for paperbacks.