Norfolk,1953. The Fens have never seen anything quite like the girls from USAF Drampton. Overpaid, oversexed and over here. And every one of them a graduate of Future Homemakers of America. For five American Airforce wives, waiting eagerly, or in some cases, not so eagerly, for their husbands to return safely to base after a busy day keeping the Russians at bay, there is little to do apart from make chicken pot pie and watch the new Queen get 'coronated.' No surprise then, when one or two of them dare to look beyond the safety of the perimeter fence for a little excitement with the natives. In the freezing Fens they meet Kath Pharaoh, a reticent, but proud Englishwoman. Bonds are forged, uniting the Americans and Kath in a friendship that will endure distant postings and the passage of time. This funny and moving novel charts their progress, through the years, as they discover that finely-honed domestic skills alone don't equip a woman for life.