The map of my life

The story of Emma Humphreys

Edited by Julie Bindel and Harriet Wistrich, Astraia Press, 262 pages, £14.99

Emma Humphreys changed the law for battered women who kill their violent partners.

In 1995 the Court of Appeal recognised for the first time a defence of provocation, quashing Humphreys' murder conviction and replacing it with a conviction of "manslaughter by reason of provocation", freeing her from nearly 10 years in prison.

This book tells Emma's story, largely in her own words. She experienced violence and abuse from an early age and became drawn into prostitution.

She began a relationship with a punter Trevor Armitage, which became very violent, and in 1985 she stabbed him. He died hours later. In 1992 she contacted the Justice for Women campaign who took up her case.

The book is a harrowing account of the effects of violence and sexual assault on a young woman, as well as a story of the remarkable strength and courage that it took to fight her conviction and have her experiences recognised by the law.