Justine Cowan reveals the tragic truth about her mother’s past in PRose’

Who would have thought that an estranged mother-and-daughter relationship could bring to light the harrowing lives of children borne out of wedlock in the London streets in the 1940s? This is what Justine Cowan revealed as she joined PRose’ to talk about her book, The Secret Life of Dorothy Soames.

Cowan recounts that it took her two to three years of research across the Atlantic to check archives and books, her mother’s very collection of significant life events, and interviews with her mother’s classmates to bring about her very first masterpiece.

Her mother, Dorothy Soames, with her seeming royalty demeanor, grew up in the Foundling Hospital that was known to admit children borne out of wedlock. There she experienced years of physical and emotional abuse along with the other children.

According to Cowan, the journey in writing the book was cathartic as it helped her understand what her mother went through. This also helped her come to terms with her own guilt of not sharing that fondness and love that most daughters have with their mothers.

“I always knew that something was wrong – something terrible happened to my mother,” recounting her instinct growing up and witnessing her mother’s inability to connect with other people including her.

Another interesting aspect of the book is how it unearthed the ephemeral struggle among women who are shamed for getting pregnant out of wedlock – and how men always never bear the consequences. Cowan’s grandmother was kicked out of the house to wander the streets of London and was forced to give up her child. And all throughout this struggle, and even to date, Justine never knew the identity and whereabouts of her grandfather.

And if the struggle of Cowan’s grandmother was not enough, Dorothy had to suffer all the consequences of her birthright. In London, where being illegitimate was shamed, babies were thrown out to the streets and left for dead. If ever they lived, they became beggars. And the Foundling Hospital’s gesture, despite all the depravity that the children had to endure, was considered charitable.

Learning from her and her mother’s experience, for Cowan “the most important thing for a child is love,” so that when they become adults, they are capable of giving it. The journey she took in writing the book also paved for her to heal – and she believes that her mother would also want her story to be told.

The memoir’s paperback will be released on April 5th which includes a new chapter that details new information that answers all lingering questions, not just for the readers’ but also Cowan’s.

For her next book, Cowan is looking at something much lighter but equally riveting that explores the rich Southern culture.