AustLit

'At first appearances, Valentine Alexa Leeper might have seemed an eccentric 'bluestocking' living within limited horizons; in fact, she was a most remarkable woman. Born in Melbourne on Valentine's Day, 1900, she was the daughter of Alexander Leeper (1848-1934), the brilliant but argumentative first Warden of Trinity College at the University of Melbourne.

'The hoard of letters Valentine Leeper wrote and received across nearly a century reveal how broadly her interests extended beyond her life in the family's Victorian home. Although she never travelled overseas, the letters probe deeply into a range of issues-great and small-of the world at large, through the eyes of a clear-minded observer. Her keen intellect, stimulated by a fine classically based liberal education, her Christian conscience seeking always truth and fairness, and her stubborn determination, all contributed to the force of her arguments.

'She began as her father's disciple, defending classics in education, and throughout much of her life fought to have her father's achievements remembered. She was at her most forthright and formidable during World War II, conducting campaigns on the immorality of bombing civilians and especially on preserving the rights of Poland. She publicly condemned racism and any curtailing of freedom of speech, and extensively supported refugees and Aborigines, and the rights of women, especially to education and ordination as priests.

'Valentine Leeper never hesitated to write to people of influence: victims of her chidings included government ministers, vicars, archbishops, heads of college, newspaper editors and the Australian Broadcasting Commission. In later life she fought relentlessly if vainly against such changes as legalising sport on Sunday and the abandonment of the Book of Common Prayer in most Anglican services.

'Feisty, witty and provocative, the letters of Valentine Leeper provide unique insights into major world events of the turbulent twentieth century. They reveal, too, an extraordinary woman of principle, intellect and passion-conservative, yet often ahead of her time-and a fearless champion of social justice.' (Publisher's blurb)