How did people in 18th century colonial communities make their living? Two beautiful new books feature the valuable jobs performed by women from all walks of life and the members of a slave family in the colonial period. The trials of life as a slave are sensitively portrayed. Colonial Women offers a close look at the life of 18th century women. Most women worked in the home and cared for children, although a few held outside jobs. This fascinating book highlights the different skills and often difficult lives of women on the farm, in business, and on the plantation as the owner's wife and as a slave.