SDWEG member, Debbie Wastling has released her third book in the Bell Family Series.
In the early 20th century in Northern England, Elizabeth writes to her two daughters, sharing her memories as she is dying of ovarian cancer.
She tells of her travails when both her parents died while she was in grade school. Her oldest brother, an estranged bastard offspring of her parents, runs the family pub and quickly runs it to the ground. After that, Elizabeth and her younger brother, not yet finished with schooling, struggle to survive with the help of wealthy family members.
At 19, Elizabeth meets the love of her life while she distributes suffragette pamphlets. Percy is not high-born, but he is hard-working. He, too, lost his parents at a young age. He and Elizabeth form a strong friendship that helps each of them bear and overcome life’s challenges.
Through Elizabeth’s stories, the reader learns what daily life is like for women living before and after WWI. During the war, she becomes an ambulance driver, and her husband, though not enlisted, is separated from the family to oversee the repair of damaged ships.
Women fill men’s jobs while men are away at war; however, when men return home, many resist allowing women to fill men’s jobs or even to wear trousers. It is even frowned on for a woman to bicycle to work. These, and other facts, portray the culture and customs related to British females. By the end of the book, women over 30 years old have gained the right to vote.
Wastling brings history to life by sharing details of daily life down to cooking, sewing family members’ clothes, knitting and crocheting sweaters, and even how to get around using an outhouse in the winter; in this way, we see how women and their families lived in pre-industrial times.
Whether you are a history buff or a general fiction lover, this book is an enjoyable read.
