Molly McIntyre was born in St Thomas's, London in 1984 with an abnormality in the formation of her muscles. Her condition was never fully diagnosed. Her mother, Lesley, a photographer, was told that Molly would probably never leave hospital and that she might not survive more than a few weeks. Lesley took Molly home and she lived for fourteen years. Molly died at home in Putney.

Throughout her brief life Molly was highly active. She travelled in Europe and America. She went to a state school in Lambeth. She joined a dance class in Covent Garden and lived every day to the full with the complete knowledge that her time was limited. Her mother photographed her constantly. The Time of Her Life opens with the first picture of Molly as a baby and ends with the last picture of her on her deathbed.

The pictures are interspersed with some of Molly's own written observations. Molly's energy and attitude is inspirational and the accomplishment of her mother, Lesley, probably has no published precedent.