Only a generation or two ago illegitimacy was one of the most shameful things that could happen in a family. Today the concept of illegitimacy no longer exists in law and babies' parents are as likely to be unmarried as married. This revolution in public opinion makes it easy to forget what it was really like to give birth or be born out of wedlock. In the Family Way tells secrets kept for entire lifetimes and rescues from the shadows an important part of all our family histories.