A former soldier, Mrs Iris Latham, of Lower Hutt, shows her recently published history of women at war to two current servicewomen, Sergeants Agnes Amotawa (left) and Winnie Shanley. Mrs Latham’s book, a mixture of history, personal diaries and memories, redresses the imbalance in the records of the Second World War — in 54 volumes of official war history, only one paragraph is devoted to the part played by women, she said. “Many women filled vital jobs in signals units. They worked in mess kitchens, drove 44 varieties of vehicles from trucks to Bren-gun carriers, trained new recruits and manned gunsites in New Zealand.”

Press, 29 August 1986, Page 29

A former soldier, Mrs Iris Latham, of Lower Hutt, shows her recently published history of women at war to two current servicewomen, Sergeants Agnes Amotawa (left) and Winnie Shanley. Mrs Latham’s book, a mixture of history, personal diaries and memories, redresses the imbalance in the records of the Second World War — in 54 volumes of official war history, only one paragraph is devoted to the part played by women, she said. “Many women filled vital jobs in signals units. They worked in mess kitchens, drove 44 varieties of vehicles from trucks to Bren-gun carriers, trained new recruits and manned gunsites in New Zealand.”