Sisters, try doing it for yourselves

With the aid of Women Unlimited - The Directory For Life, choosing a pension, going to the small claims court and even finding your way around your vagina won't be a problem, writes Fiona Mountford.

This manual, published by Penguin at the end of the month, is intended to give women (and men, if they are not put off by the title and shocking- pink cover) clear facts and advice about every potentially puzzling aspect of modern life.

The brainchild of Mel Agace, who felt she had been "ripped off by a garage one too many times", its 14 sections are comprehensive, although the acid test after reading would be one's ability to wire a plug. A few more diagrams in the "technical" bits wouldn't go amiss (with the notable exception of the sex section - is it really done like that?), but there is a surfeit of illustrations - very post-modern, natch - of women wearing not a lot and probably not thinking about their mortgages. Which, of course, this book empowers them to do.